Fate: the RED
by Shurpuff
Summary: An older, experienced Emiya Shirou finds himself in an entirely different world, where he meets many familiar faces and foes. Allied to a darker, more ruthless Saber, can Shirou survive through only his guts, wits and skills? Can he still become the hero this city of magi needs? (features almost everyone from Fate: Servants and magi, guys and gals, Arc 1 Complete!)
1. Awake

(((CHAPTER 1)))

As if he were awakening from a long dream, he stirred to life, his eyes seeing but not understanding. He took one shaky breath, then several more, his eyes now blinking, framed in an uncomprehending expression. Like a person just revived from drowning, he sat up jerkily, his blood roaring in his ears, his muscles trembling.

"Aggghhh-!"

A scream tore from his mouth, rending the silence that surrounded him. He placed a hand on his head, to stabilize himself, his mind working nonstop to process the many strange stimuli that enveloped it. After a beat, his mind went straight to the self-recognition process.

"I... am..."

That's right. It was a mental exercise, for whenever he awoke, no matter where he was, or whatever condition he might be. His mind sifted through multitudinous streams of information, until he found the fact that was set there from the very beginning.

"I am... Emiya Shirou..."

The name spoken out loud was as a keening bell that rang through his entire body. Suddenly he was no longer the seizing, mindless entity that writhed like a newborn on the grass. He was Emiya Shirou, and by that name he remembered himself.

Emiya Shirou. _Enumerate bases-mercenary, magus, comrade, captain, Projection, lover, philanderer, warrior, archer, pilot, killer, accursed-_

Countless images, effigies of distant trials, pounded through his brain in lightning speed. He exhaled, and with it he willed his mind clear of all needless distractions. Raw instincts honed from countless battles kicked in, and he looked around himself with a keen, calculating eye. _Green, green, grass, shrubs, bushes, trunks, trees: tentative conclusion-_

"Forest," he muttered, answering his mind's question of "where". His gaze panned further to the front, and then he froze. His breath literally stopped for that moment of recognition, and he wondered why he'd missed seeing it.

Short, slender frame encased in thick, dress-like armor, gauntlets. Her hair, tied in those distinct tresses. The resemblance was very striking, and he would have cried out her name, the name he had sought to pursue, endlessly, for however long-

But in the next millisecond, his brain recovered enough to discover that while everything else about her physical form was similar, there was something distinctly different about this one from the person he had known.

One glaring difference was that her armor was a shining jet black, instead of the pristine silver he was used to. Even her blue garments were in the same ebony color, as if they had been dipped in thick, cloying ink. Further, great lines of violent red, like veins jutting out from beneath skin, snaked through much of her armor.

And then of course there was her face, looking like it had been drained entirely of color-her skin paler than snow, her hair bleached into a lifeless color. It had a false, wraith-like air to it, so very different from the stern, noble aura his old companion had worn about her.

Her expression was pinched and scowling even as her face turned to regard him. Vainly he sought a sign, any sign of the person he'd known on this one's face, but the stranger soundly frustrated him.

There was no hint at all that this was the Artoria he'd fought with, loved, and lost.

And yet still, as if his mouth had not yet accepted what his mind had, he spoke, addressing the stranger: "...Sa...Saber...?"

"I greet you, my new Master," said the stranger, with a slight tilting of her head. Her voice was low and cold, much like the Saber in his memories, when their compact had been in its infancy. "Servant Saber, at your service."

Shirou, despite knowing what his mind had already deduced, could still not help but rise, his arms outstretched, like a man seeking shelter; and stumble forward. "Saber? Saber..! Is it... is it really you?"

The woman did not blink, but neither did she seem pleased when he grasped her upper arms. She felt solid enough, and warm and soft besides; and not a phantasm conjured by an enemy magus, as a part of his mind had thought. "Indeed, I am a Servant of the Saber class, Master." With a deft motion, she slid from his grasp, taking several steps back. "And though it might be presumptuous of me, please do not take hold of me in such a way again."

"Saber," he repeated, like a fool. There was a slight crease of consternation upon her face.

"Do forgive my presumption again, Master, but are you sure nothing is wrong with your head?" she said coldly. "How many times must I acknowledge this fact for you?"

"But you're Saber aren't you? No, wait, what I meant was..." He turned to the side, sucked in a breath, then continued, "You are Artoria, aren't you?"

Something shifted in her expression. "...Yes. I suppose there is little need to deceive you still. I am the person you say I am. But do refer to me as Saber, Master-or do you want every Master around discovering our weaknesses?"

Shirou frowned. He had spoken the name with the same gentleness as of someone speaking fondly of an old lover. He had uttered it to this one, despite having seen that their physical similarities ended at a point, despite the initial demeanor showing him a starkly different person.

It was, of course, something to be expected. His heart had desired for a hint of the old Saber, the softened gaze, the warm smile-none of it showed on this stranger's face. He decided then and there: there were similarities in shape and size, but this was definitely not his Saber.

Having reached that conclusion, he straightened, his mind now returning to busily analyzing his current situation. He looked around, seeing nothing different from his previous assessment. They appeared to be in a forest clearing somewhere, though finding the exact location would be difficult. He knew of talented people who could pinpoint locations through analysis of the surrounding flora along with the weather-his expertise only lay with the arrangement of the stars above and finding his relative position, and it wasn't nighttime yet.

"Right..." he said, his breathing coming back to normal. "Right." As he was in no immediate danger, he looked down and saw that there was nothing else in this clearing other than him, the clothes on his back (civilian jeans and jacket), and the black-armored not-Saber. He felt a sense of loss-as far as he could recall his traveling bag had been like a child to him, and had been more of a pillow buddy than Rin had ever been.

He was thus left without much of the tools of his trade, like his trusty peacemaker, his emergency knives, and the small cybernetic tool wired to his ears that had acted as an electronic communications hub. He felt quite naked without these tools, but at least he still had his body. Thus, he next flexed his fingers, testing the magecraft he had specifically honed for his work.

"Trace, on."

The black Saber watched with detached interest as his favorite blade appeared in a haze of blue and white, gripped firmly in his hand like it had never left. He hefted the katana, testing its edge-for now it appeared that magecraft was still possible, so at least he wasn't completely crippled yet. And so...

He gasped, as something caught his eye. The hand holding his newly Projected blade had bright-red markings on its back, symbols that he had not thought would ever appear on his skin again. He banished his blade, and examined the markings.

"That is the proof that you are a Master," Saber explained.

"I know," he murmured, touching the tattoo gingerly. Whoever had seen fit to bring him here had also given him a Command Spell of all things, though to his eyes he wasn't sure how much of it there was. The design was markedly different from the one he'd had on the Holy Grail War, but the overall feel and appearance was unmistakably and hauntingly familiar, and quite menacing. Suddenly, old feelings of tension and dread arose, compounded by the altered appearance of his old friend.

So. He compiled all that he had experienced in his brain, and he restated it again, for clarity. It was a mind-technique drilled into him by Rin from the very start, a lesson he had yet to grasp fully.

 _Unknown location. No tools. Command spell: unknown quantity, purpose._ His eyes narrowed, and appraised the Servant who'd called herself his. He didn't know much about the mechanics of the whole thing, but he was pretty sure summoning a Servant outside the Grail War was an exorbitant and impractical process. And he was completely sure that it hadn't been him who'd done it, for he was less than a third-rate magus.

Though he couldn't be sure... what had he been doing just before he'd- regained consciousness? Alarmingly, he had no memory whatsoever of the past twenty-four hours, no, make that a full week. The last thing he recalled was some task he had to do, some vague mission with details he could not recall. Neither could he determine when and where he'd been before he'd been dragged here.

The lack of memory was alarming, but at least it gave him something to work towards solving. For now, he could not afford to woolgather; he turned back towards Saber and firmly asked, "Do you have any idea about what brought you here? Who summoned you? Did I summon you?"

"I came in response to you, and only you, Master," the altered Saber said. The words would have definitely made him blush-had it come from his lover.

"Just now?" he pressed. "I don't recall drawing a circle to summon you."

She shrugged. "I do not care much for the details; that is your work, magus. The fact remains that I was summoned, and that you are the Master." Then she frowned. "Though apparently you seem to hold doubts..."

"No no, no doubts," he said hastily, averting his eyes from the Servant's steely gaze. No need to antagonize a Servant, particularly if it was acting like this. He could not hope to defeat a Servant, no matter how more skilled he was than the average person. And he was sure to be unable to defeat this Servant, if she held but an ounce of the strength of the one he'd loved.

"Trace, on," he mumbled, testing to see if he was stuck in some simulacra. He cast his gaze on the grass, and found nothing faked about them. So too did he find the trees genuine, as were the little rocks and boulders scattered all over. By all regards, it was a perfectly normal forest clearing, with nothing special or even artificial about it. If this were a simulacrum, then he'd need to go forward and do something else to test it.

He went back to regard his so-called Servant. She exerted an enormous pressure, even to Shirou, who'd been generally used to magus, who under the right circumstances would unleash some sort of destructive chicanery hitherto unheard of at the wave of a hand. The only difference here was that a Servant had vastly more potential to cause havoc.

"Is there something you find disagreeable, Master?" the Servant asked.

Deciding to take on the role, even if he was reluctant to be drawn in to this kind of mess yet again, Shirou shifted to his customary combat mindset. "I'll be frank, Saber. I am totally unsure about our current situation, and I don't like lacking any sort of information or resources to illuminate us. Therefore, we should move on, without delay, to investigate. I hope you understand." There, that wasn't too commanding, but neither was it "soft", as Rin or Illya would have derided.

Saber nodded. "I agree. Lead the way, then, Master. I shall support you from the side, and I shall protect you from any danger."

 _I shall protect you, as is my vow_ , a phantom voice said in his head. Shirou smiled crookedly. Then he stepped over towards the edge of the clearing. He sensed Saber follow. He Projected a small nail, and dropped it near a certain tree-if there was something labyrinthine about this place then a marker would suffice to keep him guided. The nail, built from his circuits, would sustain itself for a while, and would be illuminated to his senses even through thick overgrowth.

The sky was cloudy, with small patches of blue peeking through the gaps. There was no hint of a coming rain, which would have become a problem for him. He took a breath, and again marveled at the sweet, almost fresh scent of air-quite unlike the places he was used to. A world untouched by blood and steel-now that was remarkable.

They came upon a pathway through the forest, which Shirou guessed to have actually been made by humans, which hopefully meant there was a settlement close. Deciding to at least be prudent, he had Saber dematerialize into spirit form and hover near the edge, giving the appearance of him walking alone on the road. He didn't want to mention to the black Saber that this was also to not unnerve any human who might happen to see her.

They had not traveled much farther, and Shirou had yet to break a sweat, when he heard voices from one part of the path. Human voices. He dropped prone instantly, and crept his way towards the source, while sharpening his senses to make out the indistinct words. He was tempted to reinforce his senses, but refrained, knowing from bitter experience how a magus could pick apart even the weakest effort to reinforce.

He slowly made his way through the underbrush, careful to keep another eye on Saber, whose invisible form had followed along. She was just as alert as him, and this gave him a dash of confidence to move even closer.

Now that the voices were getting more and more distinct, Shirou couldn't help but cock his head. Was it just his imagination, or did the voices actually sound very much familiar? He carefully pushed through the last bit of undergrowth to take a peek, and then his eyes couldn't help but bug out from surprise.

"You are sure the signal came from here?" said the person a few feet in front of him, in a voice that sounded very much like an old friend's: Rin Tohsaka. She crouched, her back to him, near a fallen tree trunk. She wore clothes of crimson and black, which was very familiar of course; and then there was her wavy black hair, tied into the hairstyle she'd used in high school. The last bit of the puzzle would be her face, but he couldn't see it yet.

"Please be sure to check your calibrations," the unknown, possibly-Rin continued. "You cannot expect me to walk through this part of the labyrinth and search every nook and cranny!" By the tone of her voice (and the fact that no one else was here) she was probably talking through some sort of communicator, most likely a phone. "Hello? Hello! Damn!"

The figure rose, and turned around, and Shirou's breath hitched up. The beautiful face that greeted him was almost certainly the one belonging to his treasured friend and mentor. Clear blue eyes, oval-shaped face, and the pout that he could always count to appear whenever he teased her just right. And then of course there was her twin-tailled hairstyle, which he'd noted before, and which he was surprised to see her wearing now, when she'd been accustomed to a different style as far as he recalled.

Such was his surprise that he quite forgot himself, standing up from the bushes and exclaiming, only realizing too late that it was perhaps a most stupid thing to do. His split-second recrimination was proven right when a tall figure materialized at Rin's side, wearing a familiar red coat that dominated its body.

He locked eyes with Rin, and was confused to see there was no sort of recognition in her gaze, like she were looking at a complete stranger. He couldn't dwell on that thought, however, as a lot of things began happening a mere microsecond after the figure appeared.

In sequence events progressed, too fast for Shirou to comprehend, almost blur-like to his eyes, like so:

While his eyes had fixated on Rin, the red-coated figure had dashed forward, its arms crossed in front of it. It didn't need to be said that it was charging straight for him.

Then Shirou moved, backward, though his body was unable to process the speed with which the figure had moved, too fast for his normal senses to process, entirely too fast for any sort of reinforcement to make any difference. The figure would reach him in less than a second, and then...

But appearing in a flash of black and crimson, Saber then materialized at his side. His wide eyes had yet to comprehend her sudden appearance, nor less the black blade she wielded in her hand, when she stepped forward and swung it, intercepting the charging figure with a strong, downward slash.

There came the sound of a blade shredding through meat. The figure made a pained grunt, and thus time resumed its normal motions for Shirou.

"Wha-" he began, watching blankly as the red-coated figure stumbled backward, its expression unable to be seen behind its black mask, a great bloody gash neatly draped over the front of its body like a decorative sash. He then realized that the figure wielded two curved blades, black-and-white, the images of which immediately superimposed itself on his eyelids; and he cried, as if he'd looked directly at the sun, information downloading into his brain even without his say-so.

As he struggled, he heard Rin cry, "Archer!", a cry of distress that jerked him free from the paralyzing funk, just in time to notice Saber's implacable charge forward. With the opposition dismantled, the way was clear, and Saber had cleared her own path to the next target. Her blade was raised, a black-edged thing wreathed in smoke, and Shirou knew where it would cut next. Saber stepped around the fallen enemy and charged with implacable purpose, even as Shirou nearly fell over in his haste, his arm held out as if he could physically grab Saber by her clothes.

"Saber, stop!" he yelled, his voice thundering furiously in his ears. In that instant, Saber halted, to his relief.

"...Master."

He breathed a sigh of relief. _Good. Good_. "Oh good..." he gasped, unable to believe his Servant had just attempted to kill someone who looked like his friend. His gaze went towards the Rin look-alike, who looked from him to Saber with wide eyes, then to the fallen figure, whose form was suffused with light. A moment later, the figure's form flashed, and it disappeared, as if it had never been.

"Th-th-Archer..." Rin breathed.

"Master, do you wish to parlay with Rin beforehand?" said Saber, who, though looking at him still had her blade poised to decapitate Rin.

"N-I mean, yes, yes of course, Saber!" Shirou exclaimed. "And also... yes, stand down, stand down. There's no need for that."

Saber scowled. Shirou well understood the skepticism, having faced his fair share of enemies, but of course he could not just have any other person just killed like that. The other one who disappeared was an unfortunate, horrifying happenstance, and one which he would have to make up to this person, if she were amenable.

"My apologies, Rin," Shirou said, approaching Rin and bowing. Rin stared at him, and he could see that she didn't recognize him at all. "I fear we have started on the wrong-"

"Haah!"

This time he could see the attack coming, and he leaned backward as the couple of magical bullets whizzed by him. The stench of burnt ozone stung in his nose.

"You wretch!" Saber cried.

"Saber, stop!" Shirou said, running quickly to interpose himself between Rin and her.

"Master, the magus clearly attacked you."

"Yes, I know-" He sensed Rin muttering something under her breath, which was usually a bad sign. It was a wind-up to some big magecraft, and Shirou couldn't have that; not if Saber was determined to lop off her head. "Trace, on," he said desperately, forming a thick set of chains. In the next moment, he'd flung it at Rin, who squawked as the chains moved as if possessed, binding her throat and body within a second.

The magical object was a replica of an artifact he'd glimpsed in a long-forgotten tomb, a Mystic Code of significant utility. His replica moved of its own volition, and could be directed to do anything the owner needed. For now, it silenced Rin, as the chains wrapped over her mouth. Of course, now it looked like he'd captured the woman, and was ready to do whatever he wanted with her.

Yet Saber still looked dissatisfied despite Rin being restrained, looking at the prisoner like a pig about to be slaughtered; even as the Rin lookalike glared daggers at him, clearly promising overwhelming retribution for whatever he was planning to do to her.

Shirou couldn't help but sigh, and felt very, very tired. A disapproving Servant on the left, and a presumed enemy Rin lookalike on his right; neither of which were very happy with him. Though he'd tried, he was sure he hadn't made a good first impression, in this strange new world. And judging by his luck, he could expect more of the inexplicable to come.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Slowly starving to death, and yet I find time to make this.**

 **Hello, to old readers. Sorry for being out of touch for a long time, I've gone through a lot of crises, and I'm still not out of it. It is not a lie to say if I don't publish again, that will have been the last you hear of me. I'm seriously contemplating one of those crowdfunding things like P-eon, just to help, but I don't know how popular that'll be.**

 **To new readers: Enjoy!**


	2. Familiar Face

(((CHAPTER 2)))

Negotiations did not truly begin until Shirou offered a gesture of good faith. After explaining that he had no intention of killing Rin, he dismissed the projected chains. Then he turned to Saber, whose porcelain features reflected a silent outrage, and nodded pointedly.

Saber understood the underlying message, and went to spirit form accordingly. Rin glared suspiciously at the spot where she'd been, then regarded his helping hand next with equal disdain. Knowing what he did of Rin, he hoped she would take the hint and not attack again, or he'd have to risk some lost limbs intercepting Saber. Thankfully, she relented, though she ignored him and pulled herself to her feet.

"...Who are you?" she asked bluntly.

 _Shirou!_ said a voice in his distant memory. It was the same voice as the woman who'd just spoken. _When engaged with the unknown, by God don't be stupid!_

"...I am a magus, same as you," he said, after a moment's pause. Rin had been most insistent on his communication skills, particularly with dissembling; after a couple of close disasters, he could certainly see the merit. Magi had to be practical and ruthless, which meant hoarding as much advantage as one could. A name, his name, held power, and Rin always hated him giving it freely to unknowns. "For the moment, you may call me 'Bob'."

Rin's eyes narrowed. She tossed her head back and crossed her arms. "And yet you seem to know my name. You appear to have me at a disadvantage, sir. Surely a wise and venerable gentleman would not dishonor himself by not reciprocating?"

Shirou almost relented, but he steeled himself. He still had no idea if he could trust this Rin, after all. "My apologies," he said earnestly. "Perhaps later. But I should like to emphasize that I have no intention of doing harm to you." He gestured towards Saber, who remained invisible. "Though events unhappily progressed like so, for which I apologize." He had, after all, killed someone who looked like it was her Servant. That would stink up relations even before they'd formally meet and discuss. He wondered if it was still the same Servant from his Holy Grail War-maybe "blackened" like his Saber.

In that case, with his own Command Seals and the appearance of Rin and Saber and the red-coated figure, he was beginning to feel like he'd been drawn to yet another iteration of a Grail War. Yet questions remained: chief of which was the location of "this" place, the gap in his memories and Rin's seeming lack of recognition of him.

"That's it?" Rin asked sharply. "After you knock out my Servant, tie me up, threaten me, that's all you can say? How dare you! And you expect me to believe you're not going to finish the job?" Shirou could almost laugh-though laughing would be far from productive in this instance. Rin sounded frightened, like in those rare occasions he recalled where she was up against a superior force and they were hopelessly outmatched. Then she put on a strong, barbed facade, daring anyone to strike, like a frog puffing up to appear larger than she was. It was almost cute to watch, though those situations had been very nerve-racking to endure.

"I speak the truth, Ri-ma'am. My Servant may have been overzealous, but all I can do is try to find a way to make up for it." He raised his hand to his chest. "By my honor, I shall do whatever is necessary to protect you from whatever harm comes your way." Rin would need the protection, particularly if he'd just knocked her out of whatever War this was.

Rin scoffed, staring at him like he'd grown a hundred heads. "I... what?"

"In this way I can recompense you for the loss of your Servant. Well, even if you would not like my services, I can certainly escort you to whichever Overseer would take the Masterless in..." he trailed off, almost frowning. Thinking of the overseer reminded him of Kotomine Kirei, and such reminders were not pleasant for him. (Though he had been a tad intimate with his beautiful daughter)

He could feel Saber's eyes burning holes in his side as Rin stared at him. He waited, patient, trying to put himself in Rin's shoes. She was certainly in a desperate situation, and she was sure to try to bargain her way out. And then she was quite literally sideswiped by his proposal, a reversal to what she usually assumed.

Shirou sighed bitterly. The old Rin had known him better than most, and would have already slapped him silly for even trying to bargain with an enemy if she were here.

But this one wasn't an enemy; at least, he hoped she wasn't.

"If that's the case, then what? What brings you to the labyrinth?" Rin challenged. "I've not seen your old mug around the city... And with a Servant that strong it's understandable you beat Archer-but if that's the case, why gun for me? Unless... you know I'm the-" Rin hissed, drawing away from him. A disdainful laugh came from her mouth, which confused him. "I see, I see. Either you're a cat's paw for someone wanting my rank, or you're just as stupid as you look, attacking me when you've got a _Saber_. So which is it, and which should I believe?"

"What are you talking about?" he asked, unable to follow what she'd been muttering. He saw Rin's expression close, as if she were building up walls with which to wall off her emotions. That was bad-she was definitely planning something, which meant she still saw him as a threat.

"I don't know anything!" he cried. "Really! Well, I know I'm a magus, and you're a magus, and I know there's a Grail War, which means a clash between Servants to recreate the miracle-"

"Hang on, what? Pardon? Grail War? What in blazes are you talking about?"

Shirou stared dumbly at her. "The... Holy Grail War? The contest of Servants and magus, steel and magecraft?"

Rin stared at him for a good long moment before she said, "...Did you hit your head?"

"Let us assume that I did," Shirou said, with a shrug. May as well sort the confusion now. "Truthfully, now you have me at a disadvantage. The knowledge I have of this place is... well, to be frank, I have no idea where I am, what I'm doing here, or what the facts are."

"You're kidding, right? Wait, you don't look like you are..." Rin sighed, then cocked her head. "That still does not explain how you know my name."

"He heard you say it, magus," Saber said, intervening for the first time since the conversation started. She materialized behind Rin, who immediately jumped off to the side so she faced the two of them.

"I... I did?" Rin said, expression overcome with horror, as if she'd only just realized the fact. "Crap. That was stupid." Shirou eyed Saber, then quickly looked away. He could not correct Saber's lie, though there begged yet another question why this Saber was eager to do something so manipulative... well, it wasn't quite bad, but it didn't seem like Saber to lie or deceive.

"Whichever the case, I do not intend to retract my vow, ma'am. I shall surely protect you, because I do not know why I'm even here in the first place." And with that he stared deep into Rin's eyes, determined to demonstrate to her the sincerity in his intentions. He needed information, and he could not afford to let Rin run, or die. It was better to cling to the liferaft she represented, than go flailing about for another.

Rin looked away abruptly, coughing. "It's best we leave this place first. We can do that, right? You won't shoot me in the back or... cut me down?" She glanced at Saber, who glowered.

"No, do go on, lead the way." Rin just stood there, watching him for a few seconds, then slowly, hesitantly, turned around. Shirou gestured at Saber, who disappeared again, before he followed after Rin. Despite his assurances, she kept looking over her shoulder and flexing her fingers, her pace stiff and tense.

* * *

Rin led him back to the pathway, and they walked along it.

"This place is what we call the Labyrinth. It is a magically created area which manifests certain areas within it, like this forest."

"A magic... do you mean to say it is some sort of Bounded Field?"

Rin glanced at him, something shifting in her expression. "...Yes."

"Are you its owner?"

She laughed. "Do I look like I contain millions of units of mana? Understand this, Bob, this forest you see is but a room, a subset, a small portion of the overall Labyrinth. There are other rooms, other floors, each more fantastical than the last. Just this small strata alone would tax ten magi diverting the mana through their circuits, and for the whole thing? No. Impossible."

"And I assume the impossible has occurred," Shirou remarked, taking a second glance around the forest. Indeed, with the knowledge that it was just part of someone's (or something's) Bounded Field, the surroundings took on a paler, more artificial feel. Indeed he could sense that there were no wildlife whatsoever in the forest, even if the trees looked absolutely real and authentic. It was as if someone had wanted to craft a forest, transplanting or growing the trees, and yet neglecting or exterminating all other lifeforms in the process.

"Well, yes. In this case, it is the source of the Labyrinth's power. The Holy Grail."

Shirou full stopped. "I thought you said there was no such thing."

"Well, I objected to the notion that there is a War for the Holy Grail. Which is, frankly, preposterous." Rin shrugged with an exaggerated air. "I don't know where you got that idea, but it sounds dangerously subversive. The Grail is an important artifact for us, and to dare speak of coveting it..."

If there was such a Grail, then surely accounted for the Servants. And yet why summon Servants, if not to fight for it?

"How so?" Shirou asked.

Yet again Rin's eyes narrowed, her voice cold and contemptuous. "Because that would surely lead to the end of the world." She huffed and resumed her pace.

 _End the world?_ Shirou mused on that little proclamation, shuffling it to a certain spot in his mind that said, "Investigate further".

"Ah. We're here."

Shirou blinked, and saw that they'd come to the end of the path. He looked around and saw a mana surge at the right.

"What." He stared at the thing, which was invisible to normal people. They were "wounds" on a ley-line, which bled out the planet's mana freely, usually from accident, but most likely from some malevolent reason. One could theoretically gain immense power exploiting it, which would lead the Magus Association or some other group to suppress and fix it. Rin had helped him detect and identify such things, and always urged him to avoid them-knowing his luck, some sort of world-warping calamity was sure to follow. Then again, he recalled having never encountered one in his line of work.

Now, he was staring at a clear sign of a mana surge, which filled the area with such energy that he felt calm and rejuvenated after a few seconds-like he were almost becoming younger with each passing second.

"Oh, that? Do you want to use it?"

He looked incredulously at the Rin lookalike, who sounded quite blase about it. And it wasn't just that, she was actually encouraging him.

After a moment's hesitation, he approached the fountain of light, stopping just a few inches from it. Feeling mesmerized by the sight, Shirou held out his hand, and felt a great warmth spread from his fingers.

"Yes. Hm. Very good," said a voice. Shirou dimly recalled it to be Saber's. It was just so tempting to dip more than just his hand into the font, to immerse his body fully...

"Hey wait!" cried Rin. "You can't just do that, you old fart! I said use, not dive into the whole thing!"

Shirou gasped, withdrawing his hand. That was right. How could he forget? Such a thing would have been catastrophic: as the mana would fill him to full, and then further until he burst, atomized from within, his disintegrated particles joining the ley-line.

"I thank you," Shirou said, scratching his head. He could almost slap himself; he could not recall being this stupid since before he started on his work.

"Don't misunderstand," Rin said grimly. "I would have loved nothing more than see you dissolve into goo, but I know your Servant's just right there, and I couldn't count on talking her down." She glared at a spot on the ground, where she thought Saber might be. "Come on, the sooner I can get over this humiliation, the better I'll feel."

Glancing back towards the ley-line leak, Shirou nodded and followed after Rin, who after walking a few feet shimmered, like a reflection on the water's surface as it was disturbed by ripples, then completely disappeared. Shirou stood still, quite taken back. When he concentrated, he saw that the whole area in front of him actually was just a big image, like a television screen tall and wide; and that the image he saw of the tree-lined path continuing onward was merely an illusion. The trees to his immediate left and right were the last "living" things in sight, and the wall Rin had stepped through seemed a barrier to something, or somewhere.

"It could be a trap," came Saber's voice from behind.

"I see no other road than to spring it," Shirou said, shaking his head.

Then, Rin's head popped through the barrier, like a swimmer popping out from the water. "Come on, Bob! The Portal's closing soon."

"Portal?" Shirou mouthed, though he did follow, passing straight through the image-

-And emerge on the other side into a small, dimly lit room, with stone walls and wooden floor. Torches hung on the walls, and right before him was Rin, who stood before a magic circle painted on the floor. He turned around, and saw that behind him was just a stone cold wall, with no sign of the forest. Just then, Saber came through, still hidden.

"I'll assume your Servant's here now," Rin said, tapping her foot impatiently. "In that case-Close, sesame!" A shudder went through the small room, like a quake passing by. Shirou, though calm, could not help but tense, like artillery fire had come shooting overhead. A moment later, he relaxed, upon seeing Rin sigh and turn towards the exit, which were a flight of stairs.

"Um..."

"Not now, Bob!" Rin said, jogging up the stairs.

After a beat, Saber reappeared, her armored form almost melting into the darkness. Shirou looked around him, finding nothing interesting in the room itself. He supposed the polite thing was just to stay here, but he needed answers, of course. And Rin had not said anything to forbid him, so he went for the stairs.

"Wait, Master." Saber's cold voice stopped him. "I feel that we should fine-tune this relationship by agreeing on tactics. While your quick-thinking and glibness is laudable, almost jester-like, there cannot be a repeat. Particularly with regards to enemy Masters."

"But Rin said there weren't enemies," Shirou said.

Saber smiled, and it wasn't the fond one he remembered; small and patronizing, the amusement never reaching her eyes. "She pleaded for her life, and it was refreshing to see her squirm for once. But now she has the advantage, or don't you see the stupidity on your part for not restraining her with your magecraft the minute we both came here?"

"Though there's loads of ways people can deceive people, always, always, I'll choose to trust first, Saber," Shirou said, frowning. "If indeed this becomes a trap, then I'll have to think of ways to adapt accordingly, and survive. But I'll not condemn people on first, or even second appearances."

"Naive."

"Indeed," said Shirou, with a shrug. "And anyway, I'm not discouraging you from being suspicious, Saber. I'm actually glad I can count on you."

"Your convenient crutch, magus?"

"Comrade," Shirou corrected, with a raise of his brow. "Or so I thought our relationship should be. If you've different ideas, then please share."

Saber's eyes gleamed in the dark, before she closed her eyes and disappeared from sight once more. "I do have this to say," said her disembodied voice. "You seem to have grown as a magus. That is a positive. It seems your present appearance is not just for show. Just be sure it does not turn into abject senility. I shall follow your lead, for now."

Puzzling over her words, Shirou nonetheless went cautiously up the stairs. After the first few steps, he saw that they meandered upward in a spiral manner, terminating after a few meters' height. The stairs opened up to a corridor with several doors. This place had a damp, dungeon-like feel, with the torches along the walls as the only source of illumination.

"Trace, on."

A quick examination of the doors and wall revealed them to contain trace amounts of something he could not recognize, which also seemed to frustrate his efforts to get a glimpse of the layout of the rooms beyond the door. He was able to trace Rin's footsteps, which glowed a distinct color when he looked down at the floor-among all the other footsteps ingrained onto the surface of the wood. It was a technique he had to develop for his work, helping him track down someone in a chase.

He followed the fresh steps towards the only door that was open. In retrospect, that seemed the most obvious place for him to go, but he was being cautious.

The door led to another set of stairs: shorter than the previous. The double doors at the end lead to a decidedly different area.

It was a blast from the past: a slice of his memories visiting Tohsaka in her old mansion before she'd eventually sold it. The Western-style design and furnishings greeted his eyes, complete with posh carpet, landscape paintings on the walls, gas lamps of elaborate design hanging from the ceiling, and a bust of some unknown person on the corner. Here and there were doors. As they walked along the corridor, Shirou heard the noise of something bustling from up ahead.

A moment later, rounding the corner, he saw Rin rushing from door to door, carrying something in her arms. Then, before he could get closer, he felt a surge of energy from below, like a sudden burst of wind, after which a great steamy curtain erupted from the floor, from which he immediately retreated a few steps.

"What the-?"

Rin emerged from one of the doors, and stayed about the same distance from the apparent barrier as him.

"I don't know if you're just an idiot, or you had another plan in mind, old geezer," she said. "But in any case you set me back plenty, you bastard. You terminated my Servant, and now I have to spend a lot of resources just to patch him up." She snapped her fingers, and a similar barrier rose from behind him. The two barriers now effectively trapped him in the corridor. "...And you even forced me to activate this security protocol, which is a huge money sink. Damn it!"

"This is your last futile act, magus," Saber said when she reappeared, her smile cold and almost bloodthirsty. A great concentration of energy thrummed over her black sword, crimson lightning flashing through black smoke. "You will regret-"

"Alright, wait a second, Saber, wait, we can be civilized about this-!" Shirou shouted, raising his arms and blocking the Servant's path. If his guess was right, that was an Excalibur about to happen, and he didn't want the whole mansion falling down all over their heads. He turned around. "Look, er... Rin-are you going to try to kill us?"

"No, but I will restrain you until I can call in the authorities to take you away."

"Take me away where?"

She shrugged. "Away. Somewhere. Somewhere not here."

"Master!" Saber hissed. "She is clearly hostile! Do you really intend to let this woman get the best of you?"

Shirou bit the inside of his cheek. As much as he disliked being imprisoned or captured, nor less being betrayed by the Rin lookalike, he still could not bring himself to the point of trying to fight. Particularly when the other party was Rin. "...Rin. We'll play along. Just don't give me a reason to fight. I'll fight to protect myself, and Saber, but until then I will echo what I said to you before. I will not let you come to harm, and if you believe this is the way you can do it, then I'll play along. We'll play along," he cocked his head at Saber, whose stormy expression was as the turbulence in her blade.

"Whatever. The wind cutters will be moving, and it'd be best to allow them to guide you to my guest room. Don't get any bright ideas, that's just your prison. Great fucking idea not installing them in the basement," Rin added in a smaller voice.

"Very well," Shirou said. Rin snapped her fingers, which then made the barriers move forward like slow moving waves, and both herded him in the same direction. Rin went back inside the room, then went back out when the barrier passed its door, to watch them from behind.

"Are you mad, Shirou?" Saber all but screeched in a whisper.

"No. But in this way we avoid needless conflict."

"This is already conflict, you old buffoon," she said, seething. "You give her time to marshal her strength, freely giving her a stupendous amount of advantage! How do you know she won't scheme to do something?"

"If you're truly dissatisfied, Saber, you're free to cut me down," said Shirou, turning away from her rage with a world-weary sigh. "I gain nothing from a Grail War that I am told is not happening, nor do I desire the Grail in any shape, manner or form." Saber made some incomprehensible noises in her throat, and Shirou truly believed he'd be getting a sword through his heart any second now.

He didn't care. It was clear she was not the Saber he knew. He didn't know exactly what kind of existence the black-garbed swordswoman was, but he was not curious about it yet.

"You... are infuriating as ever," she said, in trembling voice.

"Saber?"

"I've had enough," she said, disappearing again. "I told you I would not tolerate senility, magus. When you are ready to see sense in destroying our enemies, then I shall speak again. Until then, do not expect my support in any shape or form, you old, short-sighted fool of a magus."

He could only grin crookedly at that. Well, it wasn't like he expected anything else. Though the smile that came to him, and the tears that almost appeared, could be attributed to something else entirely. A firm, concerned voice, hovering at the edge of his memories: feelings ever-present, the smell of sunlight on the dojo floor, and the sight of flaxen hair-

"Oi. Keep walking," came Rin's voice.

Shirou opened his eyes. "...Right."

He followed the moving barrier, which acted like a tour guide of sorts, leading him through the many halls of Rin's mansion until he came to a particular room. The barrier contracted, forcing him in. The room was large and spacious enough to contain a queen-sized bed, a large vanity and several shelves and cupboards. Two windows flanked the bed. But before he could go over and look out through them, he was pushed to the farthest corner, whereupon Rin entered from the door, her expression blank, her body language evidently confrontational.

"I suppose I should thank you for being accommodating," she said, frowning. "Again this makes me want to know what the hell your deal is."

"I'm just a tired old man looking for answers."

She scoffed. "Let us not kid ourselves. You know more than you're letting on. What is your real name, Bob?"

He stared back at her in peaceable silence for a few moments, only offering a gentle smile in response. Rin's lip curled, the look in her eyes shifting into something he knew was bordering respect. Or at least acknowledgement, like he had finally learned not to bypass a step in an important ritual. Maybe this Rin wasn't as different from the one in his memories after all.

"Very well. Let us move on to the next question: are you actually a magus or not?

"You have a Servant, powerful enough to take mine down, but people have had homonculi act as Masters by proxy, and you're not a homonculus. More likely you are a proxy Master, but I do not sense any such mystic codes on you, which is damned puzzling.

"Then you know about the appearance and use of the mana founts, which is a sign of at least advanced magi study, and that you have a working Crest in your body. But then, you made the juvenile mistake of approaching the thing, when you should have known better.

"Then you followed me through the Gate and into my house. You recognized the marks and sigils I drew on the floor, but had you actually been a magus, you would have sensed all the thinly layered traps and pitfalls I created all along the halls, things I did not put inside my basement, for obvious reasons. If you were a magus you could have stayed down there, fortifying yourself, maybe even holding my magic circle hostage. And yet you chose to follow me upstairs, where you fell right into one of my traps.

"You are a man of contradictions, Bob. Are you just a dumb old dotard, or is there steel hiding behind your duplicitous gaze? Until the truth comes out, you're going to stay right here."

"That's fine by me," Shirou said easily. He had an inkling that Saber was glaring at him, or was that just his imagination? "Though I do wish you would answer some of my questions."

Rin tossed her hair behind her. "Maybe later. I've other work to do, so you may as well-"

Of all the things to interrupt a tense situation involving a literal barricade separating two opposing parties, Shirou certainly didn't expect a shrill phone braying. It cut through the tension like a knife, and Shirou near chuckled at the comical way Rin's eyes widened before she turned to the source: the golden vintage phone set on one of the room's tables.

"Wait, but that's..." Rin said with a gasp. She waved her hands frantically, like she were blowing back some smoke. "No way! They couldn't-he couldn't-!"

"Is there a problem?"

The woman whirled towards him, her expression twisted into something quite indescribably grim and grotesque. "Not. A. Word. Not. A. Sound! If you value your life, don't you dare speak, old man." Then she went and walked over to the phone.

Shirou was still mildly confused about everything, but he did know that Rin, if she were like the Rin he knew, was right now in a rare sort of panic, like a chicken so suddenly beheaded. It took a lot to unsettle Rin and strip her of composure-usually things suddenly veering out of her tightly calculated expectations. He almost felt sorry for this woman, and wondered why.

The shrill ringing ended, and then a blue image appeared on the wall opposite Shirou. After a moment, he recognized it as a sort of projection, which then showed the blue and white tinted image of a person he did not recognize. He looked fairly strict and terse, with hair primly combed back over his head, and a slow sneer decorating his face. In this way his image peered down at Rin like an arrogant deity.

"My Lord Grand," Rin said, in the lowest, most obsequious voice he'd ever heard from her.

"Tohsaka," came the rejoinder, the smooth, cultured voice tinged with an unpleasant undercurrent. Shirou always believed in second and third impressions, and yet now he could certainly see himself punching the guy in the face. He resolved to keep quiet and listen intently with his reinforced ears.

"There has been a disturbing rumor reaching my ears on this very moment. It claims you have lost your title as the True Master of Archer."

"What? But that's absurd!" Rin spluttered.

"Well, naturally I investigated. For surely if you had been defeated then there should have been a hint of a grand and glorious battle. Far be it for me to suspect that you lost your Servant in a different and ignoble manner."

"I have not lost my Servant, Lord Kayneth." Rin said testily.

"Well naturally I believe you, my dear. But of course such accusations need verification, as it is my sacred duty as Grand to ensure that everything in this city remains properly ordered. To that end I must be fair, and treat all rumors with the same consciousness to protocol, no matter who they might be."

"And in your search, naturally you concluded that no such thing has occurred."

The face of the one named Kayneth twisted. "Ah, there's the rub, my dear. It turns out that your Servant's Signal seems to be terminated-or at least something has happened to the Signal that it's caused malfunctions of the instruments on our end. So that has furnished some doubt: did the True Master of Archer really lose her Servant, or is it all a glitch?

"But such things are readily determined. Please produce your Servant, Rin Tohsaka. After verification, we can put the matter to rest."

"Well that's..." Rin swallowed. Her voice trailed off, becoming almost indistinct in the end. "He is... um, indisposed at the moment."

"Ah, well do summon him to your side then. You can reimburse the Command Seal later."

"Oh."

After a moment's pause, the one named Kayneth blinked, staring down at Rin with a puzzled look. Then it was replaced with comprehension, swiftly shifting to something like a wolf that has scented wounded prey. "Oh? What is the matter, True Master? Is the rumor correct after all?"

"Of course not!" Rin said heatedly. "I just can't produce Archer yet!"

"I knew it!" the man's voice thundered with joyful triumph. "I knew that you were unworthy to take on a title so far above your station, whelp! I had much respect for your father, but you have proven yourself a worthless upstart, thinking yourself better than everyone else! Oh, I cannot wait for the Overseer to strip the title from your pathetic shoulders."

Rin stamped her foot on the floor. "Now hold on! You can't do that! I'm a True Master. I'm still the True Master of Archer!"

"You have just shown that you cannot prove that, child. Mayhap you can be apprenticed to me after this fiasco is resolved-I can assure you I shall teach you more than you deserve."

"But-"

"You know the rules that bind us all in this city, Rin Tohsaka," Kayneth said, with a condescending shake of his head. "And based on all the data I've gathered, the rules empower me, unfortunately, to inform the city that you've forfeited the right to be the True Master of Archer."

"No!"

"My my," Shirou suddenly said, making it that his voice boomed out through the whole room, to be clearly heard by everyone in the room, including the magus on the wall. "It appears your incompetence has undone you at last, Master."

Rin's shoulders jerked, then she turned her head slowly towards him, her face looking like she were choking on something unpleasant, her eyes blazing with a rage that were ready to incinerate him for his frank impudence. Then she blinked and did a double-take, when she saw his appearance.

"What? Who is that? Who's talking?"

Shirou crossed his arms. "Servant. Archer. I am contracted to this foolish magus."

Kayneth's image goggled at him. "You're Archer? But wait, you're different! You're not-"

"Yes, I am a new Servant, magus," Shirou said. Halfway through the conversation, he'd picked up enough to know that the Rin lookalike was in trouble, and he was able to grasp a reasonable solution afterwards. Thinking quickly, he stripped off his upper coat, leaving his upper body bare naked, used a projected blade to cut strips of cloth from it, then fashioned it into a makeshift mask that concealed his face, like he were prepared to traverse a hot desert. The rest he bound around his right arm, to hide his Command Seals, which he'd discovered to have actually covered much of his arm up to his shoulders.

Frankly speaking, it had gotten embarrassing to show off his body as time went on, because a lot of people always tried to ask about all the different scars that had accumulated on it over time, like graffiti on a dilapidated wall. He hoped the battle-scarred appearance would help make a sufficient impression.

"No. No, I cannot believe that. Impossible! You're just a fake! And Rin Tohsaka will fall for her impudence! Speak sense, Servant!"

His split-second decision was gutsy, and apparently something which Rin had not expected, which showed on her incredulous face. In this way he could preserve Rin's strength and ensure that his vow of protecting her would not be in vain.

"You're right, magus. She certainly is impudent, and foolish. To think she would summon me on such a trivial whimsy. I do not currently understand the circumstances, but it appears she replaced her old Servant and summoned me. That was just moments ago-so perhaps that is the reason for the inconsistencies in your systems."

"But that's-" Kayneth gritted his teeth.

"Th-that's right, Lord Grand!" Rin cried, turning back to face the magus' image. "My only mistake in this instance is not informing you of a little experiment I wished to do-and to that end I wished to summon a new Archer in place of my old one! And then of course I was reluctant to show this one to you because..." She tilted her head, glancing at Shirou from the corner of her eye. "Because I was keeping his headstrong, almost insolent attitude in line."

Shirou cocked his eyebrow, and inclined his head in acknowledgement, as the magus scowled, clearly irate. "I, at least, have reason to be insolent, 'Master'. You, on the other hand, have been far more headstrong in summoning one such as I." The curdling look Rin shot him was probably half-genuine.

"B-be that as it may, while this is... certainly unprecedented... This doesn't change anything, Rin Tohsaka," said Kayneth after a moment's pause. "I, the Overseer's right hand, must ascertain the truth of it all. Completely. Decisively. As such, you must bring your Servant to one of the Arenas."

"...Beg pardon?"

"Obviously we have to put him to the test. We must see if he is indeed a Servant worthy enough to be the True Master's Archer."

"Hold on, what? What? I've never heard of such a stipulation! True Masters do not need to be 'tested'!"

"I'm making it. Right now. Because of you. Because it's you. You've pushed it to this point." Kayneth narrowed his eyes over Rin's head, staring right at him. "You might be too young to realize this, but True Masters earned their place through the crucible of fire and conflict. I have even had the honor of pursuing this lofty title of mine through much toil and blood. And by my side, always, was my Servant. And now we shall see if your new Servant is up to the task, or if its failure shall prove your incompetence. After all, sacrificing your previous Servant for some unfathomable design is just the same as losing it in honorable battle. Are we agreed?"

Rin didn't answer. Her head was bowed, and Shirou didn't need to compare her image with his memories to tell that her whole body was shaking. All sorts of ugly emotions roiled through her now, along with the thoughts and calculations she would surely have, all of which would paralyze her. If she continued like this, this Kayneth would find further fault in her, and his gamble would be for nothing.

Well, it wasn't like he had anything to lose, anyway.

The arrogance came almost naturally to him. Observing others talk in such a way was doing wonders for his act. "A test is it? I would skewer you, magus, for even daring to think I am in any way inferior to any other. While I do not have much respect for this new Master of mine, insulting her choice in summons is another way of insulting me and mine directly. So have at you! I accept your challenge."

Kayneth grinned unpleasantly. "Very well, Servant Archer. I only hope you are as good as you think you are, for this magus' sake."

"I do not care for her," Shirou said, raising his chin. "For I do recall you are not testing her, but me. And believe me when I do say this, little child, that I will curse you to sleepless nights and brooding silences, as you try and fail to get over the shame of being utterly humiliated by my illustrious power. Now, begone!"

Kayneth pursed his lips, then turned back to Rin. "The Arena Hall 3, Rin Tohsaka. Now." His image winked out, disappearing entirely from the wall.

After a long and tense moment, during which Shirou ran through half a dozen predictions for the upcoming test, Rin slowly turned back towards him, her face completely drawn and haggard.

"What... the hell... are you trying to pull?"


	3. Not Retired Yet

(((Chapter 3)))

Spatial translocation. Instantaneous movement from one fixed space to another.

The fact that this sort of technology existed in this place cemented its other-worldliness. Such a feat would have been something close to Sorcery for the magi he knew.

Rin escorted him (through her very helpful wind traps) through her mansion to a certain room, where she performed a quick ritual using the magic circle on the floor. The far wall then shimmered, like back in the forest, and Rin pushed him to go through first.

He ended up, as expected, on a completely different place. Gone were the posh, Western-style furnishings of Rin's home-now this looked somewhat less comfortable and homey. Gray imposing walls with smooth surfaces lined the hall, and the light came from a source he could not see. Marching forward, their footsteps made loud, clip-clop noises on the floor. Shirou tried to analyze the material of the surroundings, but found that they were completely shrouded to his eyes, much like the trace amounts he'd found in Rin's mansion.

They came to an elevator-like room, which groaned and shuddered as he felt it lift them upward. Rin, who so far had remained silent, now turned to him and said, "Well, _Bob_ , this is a fine mess you're in."

"Do you think so?" he murmured, trying not to look too pointedly at Saber's invisible presence.

"Do you have a plan, 'Servant'? What are you going to do, reveal the presence of your Servant?"

"That would be unwise, I think." What would that Kayneth say to _that_ particular fact? Nothing good, he guessed.

"I think so, too." Rin's body clenched: hands, arms, shoulders, everything. "Tell me, do you foresee success?" Shirou only looked at her, truly finding the answer complicated, to which she shuddered and exhaled a long breath. "Well now, it looks like I'll be joining you in death. Because I'd rather blow myself up than live in deep shame."

Shirou had no reply formulated, busy formulating some sort of counter-measure in the few time he had left. His earlier proclamation to Kayneth hadn't been all bravado: he was reasonably sure he could put up a good fight, even if the result was inevitably death.

But he would prefer to live, if possible.

They'd stopped before a mirror of sorts, narrow enough for only one person to get in. "I'll go in first," Rin said, without looking at him. "As is customary. Wait here, until the Gate shimmers-that's the signal for 'Servants' to be able to enter."

"I understand."

"Do you?" Rin laughed hollowly. "I doubt you understand the full severity of what you've done to me. All the pain, the anguish, the sacrifices I made, and then of course the triumphs... all of it undone in less than a day. Perhaps I should plunge the blade in your neck, to save everyone the trouble? Ah, but, I think your Servant would take a dim view of that."

They stood there in uncomfortable silence, unsure of what the future would bring, both unsure of the other, and yet knowing that a fragile bond of hope linked them together, in this moment. He supposed it was similar to what two felons might feel, on the eve of their execution.

"Goodbye," Rin said finally, stepping through the Gate.

Movement appeared from the corner of his eye. It was Saber.

"Come to tell me off?" he asked, and instantly felt bad for sounding so flippant. It was bad form, especially for a Servant who expected better of her Master.

His expectations seemed to line up with Saber's expression-a silent, dismissive glare with her golden eyes, her lips thin and pressed together. It would seem like had earned her eternal displeasure. Yet again Shirou was struck by the sheer resemblance to the Saber he'd known. He almost wanted to ask-before he possibly died here-if she was still Artoria, only painted a sinister black.

"But of course you won't answer," Shirou said, with a grin. "And obviously you won't offer any insight, or possibly your aid. Not," he added, when she took a step forward, "That it would be a good idea, revealing you. Don't worry about me, Saber. I'm going to find a way: to help Rin, while at the same time staying alive."

Saber crossed her arms, tilting her head and raising her brow in such a way that seemed to suggest, "Hopefully you do have a way to be alive, even though so you have so far been derelict in your duties as a Master. So don't make me have to pick up your entrails after you." Well, maybe the underlying message wasn't that long and complicated and grim, but that was probably the gist. Then, she disappeared from view again, his silent, unseen protector.

"I leave it to you, should the worst happen, Saber," he said aloud.

A moment later, the Gate shimmered.

* * *

Rin Tohsaka waited beyond, on an area shaped much like a balcony. When he drew nearer, he saw that it overlooked a large, blank area below. The word "arena" came back to him, mentioned by the magus from before, and he could certainly see the resemblance to a gladiator's dusty pit. though the floor of the circular area below was made of a different, smoother substance.

To the sides of them were other balconies like this, near all of them empty of seats. On a balcony directly across the arena from them though, was a person, and this one spoke.

"So this is the Servant?"

Shirou's attention instantly went to the speaker. It was Kayneth, the magus from before. His appearance seemed drastically different than from when he was just an image on a wall. His platinum blond hair was slicked back over his head, strong aristocratic features and piercing green eyes. He had a stronger, more palpable presence now than before, and Shirou was reminded of certain high-class individuals he treated with in his past. He wore thick dark-colored robes of sophisticated design which gleamed under the light. Overall he was the very picture of a lean, drooping, predatory bird. Around his neck hung some sort of amulet, a circular thing upon which was inscribed the peculiar zodiac sign of the Libra.

Shirou's gaze flickered down towards Rin, and saw she was bowing slightly, her body stiff and unmoving. There was something new to her now, mainly that she too wore a strange amulet. Unlike the one Kayneth wore, it had the picture of a bow and arrow on it.

"Before we begin," the man said, drawing Shirou's attention back to him, "We would just like to ask you, Servant Archer, if you had anything to say." Kayneth cocked his brow, and gestured pointedly towards the bowing Rin. "If you are able to better clear up this... difficulty: illuminate us, then, if you please, and we shall be eternally grateful."

It was obvious even to the oblivious outsider what this Kayneth meant. From the way the man talked to Rin before, it seemed clear he had some sort of grudge for her, and Shirou was an obstacle who'd set himself in Kayneth's path. It was the option to come clean to the magus, at the expense of giving Rin up.

Shirou realized it would actually be a good idea to confess the deception. It would be a chance to learn what kind of place this world was, through the perspective of a grateful, seemingly powerful person like this Kayneth.

The alternative of course, was very bleak. He had done well playing the Servant, but actually submitting to whatever tests they had in store would have a great chance to reveal his inadequacies, thence proving his and Rin's lie. It most likely lead to an early demise. If he confessed, he would be able to buy himself time, time to gather more information about this place, to marshal his wits, his options, to move forward with Saber.

It was an option he knew the black Saber would approve.

It took just a moment to process those thoughts. It took another for Shirou to banish the ideas from his mind as quick as a bullet shot from the barrel. The thought was quite unworthy, and was very unlike him. It was not a matter of honor, but of the Self. It would be a betrayal of everything Emiya Shirou stood for, to be a Hero of Justice.

"No, nothing," Shirou said, summoning his lackadaisical manners. He made an exaggerated turn towards Rin, then shrugged. "Other than to say that the magus who purports to be my Master is stupid," and this earned a flick of a glare towards him, "And that you seem to be much the same. Well, I don't hold it against your kind."

"Really now," Kayneth said, looking like he'd just sucked on a particularly rancid lime. "Well, if that is your answer sir, then of course I shall not dispute your choice. As, I am sure, you will not dispute mine. You will need to be subjected to a test, to start. For now, go to the arena space below."

After receiving the command, Shirou waited if Rin would say anything to protest. But it appeared that this was something the magi of this place knew about, and approved implicitly, so without further comment, he went over the balustrade, reinforced his lower body, and landed with a soft thump on the arena floor.

Unheard, perhaps, by the others, were the words muttered under his breath in the last moment:

"Trace, on."

* * *

"Excellent. First, let me examine your parameters," came Kayneth's voice from above. Shirou crossed his arms. He could feel the rumbling in his ears, as of battle drums echoing far in the distance, as time slowed for him. This was it. Though it was but the first hurdle, this might also be the hardest. An examination of his body by a well-trained magus. He thought he'd done well hiding his strange Command Spells, but he did not know if they had ways to distinguish a human body from a Servant's. There never really had been an opportunity to study the difference, in his own experience.

His mind raced through the options. The option to fall down and prostrate himself, to beg forgiveness for the deception was discarded. He had an inkling this sneering man would have none of that, would prefer to crucify him (and Rin) if Shirou dared.

So that left an arrow to the face.

He marked his breathing, and waited patiently for the magus to be done with his examination. After a few moments of silence, Kayneth made a sound of disbelief. "But this is..! Is this a joke? Rin Tohsaka!"

"Yes, Lord Grand?"

"His parameters are a joke!" Kayneth shouted, filling the empty arena with his voice. "Everything below C! And the only thing that's notable about him is his Noble Phantasm!"

Shirou's brows fought to keep from shooting up and past his forehead. _He had a Noble Phantasm?_ Then realization set in, and he thought, _Well yes, I technically do have a Noble Phantasm._

"May I remind the Lord Grand, that parameters do not fully encapsulate a Servant's potential?" came Rin's firm reply. "And, as further reminder, reference my victory over my predecessor, whose Servant had numerically superior parameters compared to mine." Shirou felt relieved that Rin at least sounded confident now.

"Hmph. We shall accept it." Kayneth leaned back, and Shirou saw he was actually sitting down on a high-backed chair of some sort. He steepled his fingers, and continued, "But we are not yet satisfied. Another test, to see if he is worthy to replace your Servant. Are there any objections?" he said sharply, looking from Shirou to Rin as if daring them to protest.

"None," said Rin.

"Let's get on with it, magus," Shirou said. Inwardly, he was surprised his deception continued; did they not have the means to distinguish a Servant from a normal human? But it didn't seem time yet to relax. He clenched his fist.

Looking overtly pleased by his acceptance, Kayneth snapped his fingers. A second later, the whole floor rumbled beneath Shirou, as he felt the arena shift and vibrate under his feet. Then, the wall along the other side of the arena slowly began to rise, revealing a dark, unlit recess behind it.

Shirou stared at the darkness, as if he could pierce through to its depths. Deep in his mind, he thought he could imagine hearing the distant thunder of gears shrieking against each other. What would emerge from the depths? A phantasmal beast? A horde of warriors? A Servant?

Shirou had never been to the coliseums of Ancient Rome, where men fought in the dust, blood caking their steel, lions and other beasts ready to devour their flesh. But he had participated in arenas before, where arrogant men aped the Emperors in organizing gladiatorial contests using the miserable and exploited.

He closed his eyes. Recalling the injustices there made his blood roil, but he had to maintain the clarity of his mind here, now.

A clattering came from within. Shirou tensed as a humanoid figure emerged, towering over him by as much as several meters. From the start, it looked quite artificial, its skin colored a metallic bronze, its head a faceless lump set above chitinous shoulders. But most distinct of its features were the multitude of arms it held, jointed as insectile limbs, each terminating in long, thin shafts a couple of meters in length.

"Meet the new prototype Lancer testing dummies from the forges of Babbage and co.," Kayneth drawled. "A fitting test, for a Servant like you."

"My lord grand!" Rin suddenly shouted. "That thing is-!"

"Why, yes, I'm glad you noticed, Rin Tohsaka. It is a formidable thing, formed around one of the newer, stronger cores. More long-lasting, you see." Kayneth spoke as if he were a salesman expounding the features of his latest product.

For his part, Shirou reinforced his eyes, and saw that the dummy was made of the same unfathomable material as the walls of the arena. He could extract a few of its relevant properties, such as a vague description of its hardness, but the alien-ness of the material confounded him.

"That thing's too powerful!" Rin said.

"Tut tut, you should trust your Servant in this, Rin Tohsaka. They know the situation better. Besides, a feeble creation such as this should be well within his abilities, isn't that right Archer?"

Rin was right. That thing spelled bad news, and they hadn't even fought yet. Inhuman automatons like these were generally a pain to deal with, as Shirou could not prey on the more human frailties such as fear or anger. It was a contest of strength and wits, and right now he'd be damned if he could even deliver on the former.

And yet he said, "Not bad. A decent challenge at least." Shirou clenched his hands, flicking a trigger and willing his circuits to come to life. He was glad to see they answered him-he would need all the mana he could muster. He stared at the thing's many menacing limbs, and wondered how fast he would need to be. For a while, he thought of calling on the black Saber, whom he knew was there, but he quickly dismissed that desire.

"Well, you heard your Servant, Rin Tohsaka. Since there is nothing else, then let us begin!" Kayneth clapped, and the multi-armed thing jerked to the right, flailed its spear-like limbs, and then charged.

* * *

Shirou barely had time to Project his favored sword to meet the dummy's assault when it was already on him, stabbing its arms forward to converge on a point, which he was forced to clash with the edge of his blade.

Pain surged through his hastily reinforced arms, as the force of the dummy's first attack bit into his very bones. His circuits flared; power coursed through his whole body-just in time, as the dummy had already moved, angling some of its arms to hit him.

Shirou dodged left, fending off the spears with quick, short strokes. A millisecond later, his heightened senses saw the gashes left on the blade-a testament to the inferiority of his creation. He snarled, breath stopped, eyes burning with the need to consume as much information as possible-

 _-uneven surface_

 _-force needed_

 _-equation_

 _-time to produce_

 _-extrapolate speed-_

"Gah!" Shirou hopped backward, after feeling the faint sting of the spear grazing his skin. He discarded his sword, then Projected another.

"Are you pretending to be a Saber, Servant? Why the sword play?" came Kayneth's voice, accompanied by a loud guffaw.

Shirou ignored him, entirely focused on blocking attacks and backing up slowly, his mind accessing, calculating and processing information at a feverish rate. Thanks to sufficient reinforcement, he could barely eke out a defense; but it was a fast drain of his mana, and even then his body might soon tire from the exertion.

His sword shattered, the metal still unable to last long against the alien material. A lightning quick recalculation ran through the steps of Projection in only several milliseconds, resulting in a product that was heavier, but with an improved edge. He lurched and twisted, leaning back or sidestepping thrusts and sweeps with barely a scratch. Now having reached the peak of adrenaline for his age, Shirou began to feel winded, his breath coming out in short, wheezing gasps. It would only take a while before he'd be overwhelmed.

Desperately, he poured mana through his circuits, and a second, smaller blade, with the same properties as the longer one, appeared in his other hand. He threw the older sword, in an attempt to distract the dummy, after which he took a step to the left and neatly dismembered one of the dummy's limbs, the sharpened metal penetrating at last.

He could not yet savor the first victory, as the thing did not feel pain, nor did it feel the need to complain loudly about losing an arm. Though his lungs burned, his brain feeling like it was throbbing with the beat of his harried heart, though his muscles ached with every swing and parry, he forged on, the distant thunder crashing through his mind.

There was a weakness he could exploit, and had been waiting to exploit, with the weaponry this dummy sported. It had long reach and stabbing power, and was one of many; but the shaft was not fatal unless swung to act as a beating stick, and its multitude of arms worked against it, impeding it should it try any other action than stabbing.

And so, he threw the smaller blade at the thing, and when it spun towards its metallic chest the arms curved inward, forming a barricade. The dummy must have realized his intentions, and much sooner than Shirou anticipated; as it then moved its arms to intercept his charge, even with the short sword embedded in one of its weapons.

But Shirou didn't miss that brief chance, as with one strong stroke, drawing on the reserves of strength in his muscles, he tore through much of the thing's weaponry. Then he let the sword go, and grabbed the shorter sword's hilt, and then hacked off the other remaining limbs with quick, savage precision.

Panting heavily, he pushed himself back, wary of a counter-attack, even as the dummy tottered and shivered, stabbing and swinging with the stumps its arms had become. Then Shirou could almost imagine its desperate battle cry as it lunged forward, determined to fight on despite its current state.

It never got more than a few steps. Arrows pierced its bodies in all three of its possible vital points, the arrowheads tipped by the same metal that had successfully cut through its limbs. Shirou nocked the next arrow on his newly projected bow, and carefully waited to see what would happen. The dummy jerked and heaved, before slumping down on its knees, all will to battle lost.

He breathed out, once, then lowered his arms. He focused, willing the trembling muscles in his arms to lie still. The fight had taken all of a minute, and yet already he felt as if he'd participated in a run-and-gun chase for a couple of miles. Granted, upon retrospect there were a hundred things he could have done better against the dummy, and the enemy wasn't even as hard as some of the battles he'd endured in his life.

Yet he'd been almost pushed to the limit, straining to meet Kayneth's challenge without overplaying his hand. He was thankful he had not needed to do something drastic to poke his aching, creaking body to full battle function. And even then a part of him chastised him for wanting to hold back, as if he had little regard for his own life-in a voice exactly like Rin's, it told him to unleash Excalibur the moment a threat came.

Speaking of the magus, he looked up, and saw the predictable mask of displeasure on the magus' face. More surprising, though, was Rin, who had leaned over the balustrade, her eyes bugging out, mouth parted, frozen in utter surprise and disbelief.

Shirou wondered what the black Saber thought.

He cleared his throat. "Well, I've done my part, magus. I think I've done very well for myself, eh?"

"Y-You! You! How is this-" Kayneth made a peculiar noise in his throat.

"I believe that this has now supported my case, Lord Grand," said Rin. She was now calm and composed, her head raised, chin up; a return to the imperious Rin Tohsaka he knew best. "My new Servant, though lacking in manners and respect, is more than qualified to be Servant to the True Master."

"Not yet! You haven't won yet, Rin Tohsaka!" A ghoulish smile came over Kayneth. "Yes... that's right, another test! Let us see your true power, Servant Archer!"

"Lord Grand, this is unjust!" Rin cried, slamming her hand on the balustrade. "It goes beyond all the rules you claim to enforce. You accuse me of bending the rules for my benefit, and yet I have never broken them completely! And in those rules you cannot ask to see another magus' Servant to demonstrate their power without the Master's consent, and I do _not_ give my consent now in this case!"

"I do not care, foolish upstart. If the rules do not see you crushed, then the rules are wrong!"

"My, my, my, did the Lord Grand misspeak?" came a loud, female voice. Shirou blinked, cocking his head, wondering why it seemed so familiar. "The rules are everything in this city. Or must we consult all the True Masters?"

"Overseer!" Kayneth's eyes widened, his passionate furor fading slowly when he turned to the source of the voice. "I was merely-" And Shirou was no longer paying attention to what he said, as he spied the person who'd just recently appeared on another balcony.

"F-Fuji-nee?" Shirou whispered, looking up at the woman wearing a crisp set of business clothes. The playful smile, the pretty, mature face, the brown hair cut short: this was definitely his old guardian from his youth, Fujimura Taiga.

Or so it appeared.

"Overseer, I must protest my Servant's mistreatment," Rin said, addressing the Taiga look-alike. Lookalike speaking to lookalike. This seemed like a drug-induced fantasy, and yet Shirou's mind felt clear. "The only fault I made was in not informing the Lord Grand about my new summon. I am still the True Master, and I did not lose my Servant in honorable combat!"

Taiga quirked her brow, then smiled at Kayneth. "Is it true, Lord El-Melloi?"

"Well... most of the evidence certainly supports that conclusion..." he said faintly.

"If that is the case, then there is certainly no need to test the Servant further." Taiga looked down, at him. Shirou expected to see a sign of recognition, anything. But she saw him as a stranger-and curiously enough he felt like suppressing a shudder at the unseeming way her eyes swept over his body, like a predator sizing up its next meal. He felt her gaze linger on the front of his scarred old body, with his bare chest and abdomen. "He certainly looks... _formidable_ enough to fulfill his function to Rin Tohsaka."

"She must be chastised. Her action was unprecedented."

"Do so, then: a fine should be enough," Taiga said, blinking. "And to be sure the others are aware, remind the other True Masters about the ruling. Then, from now on, you shall be extra vigilant, my Lord Grand."

"O-of course. Very well, Overseer." Kayneth bowed. It was so much a reversal from his earlier, arrogant attitude. Shirou wondered who the Taiga lookalike was, that she could command this respect. Was it a joke from the cosmic beyond? "But may I ask, why are you here...?"

"Oh, that's right. There's a bit of an emergency, Kayneth, and we need to look into it. Frankly I'm surprised you didn't hear." She waved towards Rin. "You're dismissed, True Master. We shall send over the details of your fine later."

"Oh, um, right! Come, Archer!" Rin said hastily.

Shirou ran up the wall, then scaled the last few feet up to the balcony with his hands. He suppressed a tired wheeze when he made it to the top. He glanced back at Taiga, who looked at him with curiosity, and at Kayneth, who now had a placid face, though his eyes betrayed the rage swelling within him.

 _Brilliant_ , Shirou thought glumly. He'd made one more enemy in this place, and he didn't even know what he was even doing here.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says:**

 **Hope you enjoyed.**


	4. Beginning of Intrigue

(((Chapter 4)))

"That was really cutting it close."

Shirou made a humming sound as he examined the small cut on his arm.

"If it weren't for the Overseer, Lord Archibald would've pulled out something even worse. Thanks to you, we managed to thoroughly deceive that oily-haired twat. It was good to see you managed it."

"Hmm..."

"The fact that _you actually managed it..._ It's pretty remarkable as it is, 'Bob'. Are you sure you aren't actually a Servant?"

"Hmm... what?" Shirou jerked his head up. Rin was looking at him with narrowed eyes. "What? No. No! Of course not. If I were a Servant, would I not have destroyed that thing with ease?"

"Constructs like that aren't destroyed easily. You'd need a fully unleashed Noble Phantasm, or a particularly rabid Berserker. And the constructs from that Babbage place? They're the best in the industry."

"Is that so?" He couldn't, of course, tell Rin he had been able to analyze the thing's vague structure through his magecraft, and then quickly develop a suitable counter-measure on the fly. In fact, he hadn't even expected it to work, at the time. Of course, he couldn't just expound on his battle theory to Rin, who might find it incomprehensible anyway. "Perhaps I merely got lucky."

Rin raised her brow, but said nothing more. They walked on in silence, towards the room where they'd first arrived, then through the "teleporter" back to Rin's house.

Once they'd both arrived in a flash of light, Rin stepped off the platform and began to massage her head, all while thoroughly shaking and pulling at her hair. "Thank goood that went well. Damn it! That was almost too close!" She whirled and pointed at him. "And I still have you, to blame, by the way, but since you helped, I've decided to let you off the hook. Ah, well doesn't mean I trust you, still. But, the mansion is yours, as long as you don't anything stupid."

She turned to head through the door, but Shirou hastily stepped forward and said, "If it were no trouble, Rin, would you be able to answer my questions? I'm still rather lost."

Rin shook her head. "Can't. I've got a whole lot of work to do. Probably going to be busy the whole night... and even into the morning. Can't really say. But, there's a small library you can use-it's the first door upstairs on the right when you use the grand staircase." And then, she turned and left, and he could hear her hurried footsteps echo through the room.

Shirou snorted loudly at her odd manners. He looked down at the wound, where a patch of bright red now seeped through his makeshift bandage. What he actually needed more than a library was a privy he could use, so he could better patch up the wound. Though he guessed Rin might not have first aid supplies on hand, he could at least use the running water to help perform a simple cleansing ritual. Sighing, he went for the door-

-And was almost bowled over by a body, which almost collided with him.

"Watch where you're going!" Rin growled. She blinked. "A-anyway, that doesn't matter now, here." She held out a small red jewel, which glowed brightly."

"This is..?" he asked, receiving the proffered object.

"A craft essence. You don't know about those?"

His brows shot up. "I know that they're very rare. What do you want me to do with this?"

Rin sniggered; a rare sight he had yet to experience before, as rare as the object she was supposedly giving. He didn't really know what exactly they were, but craft essences were a type of magically-imbued object. _His_ Rin had said they were rare sights in public, as magi preferred to hoard them out of sight. "Well, no, not really. In fact I'm _swimming_ in the damned things. Anyway, it contains just a bit of magic in it." At his blank look, her face flushed, and she pointed sharply at his wound. "For _that_!"

"Oh! Well, I thank you Rin. That's very thoughtful of you," he said with a grateful smile.

Instead of accepting his gratitude, Rin frown only deepened, and she tossed her hair back with a sniff. She went off without another word.

After a moment of silence, while he regarded the small red jewel, Shirou blinked. "Crap, I forgot to ask her about the loo."

* * *

It took some time, along with a little reconnoiter of the areas in Rin's mansion he could access, but he finally found the place. Along the way, he discovered that nearly half of the rooms in the area were locked away, including the area Rin had disappeared into, which he assumed were her personal quarters.

Thereafter he stood proudly inside the rather cramped, tiled room-naked as the day he was born. His filthy clothes had been piled in a neat corner, and Rin's jewel lay on the sink.

He wondered if the black Saber was in here too, watching. He liked to imagine not, but he still couldn't help but feel self-conscious, even if he had gone through more embarrassing situations before.

Shirou stared into the mirror, and saw a man carved from the silt of conflict. His coarse, weathered face was brown as a nut, scarred and wrinkled. Long gray streaks painted through much of his faded, auburn hair. Thick gray bristles colluded to create the impression of a faded mustachio. His arms, thick and ropy, were, as the rest of him, pockmarked by various scars and scrapes. More recently, there was the elaborate bundle of command seals dominating one arm, which now looked as if suffocated by twisting crimson branches. Despite the threads of muscles jutting through his body, from afar he still seemed rather lean, as his work often required him to be agile and spry on his feet.

After a quick assessment, he concluded, "Not bad." Age had not worn down on the sturdy body by much, not even as a pronounced stoop of his spine. But as the one who lived and breathed the body, he knew that right now his body was as an old machine: worn, clogged and leaking all in different spots.

He turned on the faucet, and let the water run. Blood-stained liquid flowed down the drain in rivulets. His magus' instinct thought it all a waste, letting the blood go, but without his favorite bag he had no tools to take and store his blood. Rin had instilled in him to value blood as more than his decoration after a fierce battle. Considering his choice of work, he was used to storing it in small phials. They had a variety of uses, from impromptu rituals to a bargaining piece in large quantities.

After thoroughly dousing the cut, Shirou took Rin's generosity and poured his mana into it. The red jewel glowed, and light spilled through the gaps of his clenched fist before he placed it over the cut. He idly wondered, and not for the last time, if it could've been better to still have Avalon.

He sighed as he felt the sting of his cells being browbeaten to work harder-but the dull, buzzing pain allowed him to wool-gather.

There were a dozen things he could've done better in that fight, for example. He didn't fault the him who had to face the enemy without prior planning, but he also hadn't needed to get a scratch. And though minor, it represented a distressing precedent, one which he needed to rectify if he wanted to survive here.

The himself in his memories, the Emiya Shirou that had reached the peak of his craft, would have had no trouble overcoming the dummy in any which way. It was easy to fault his lack of equipment, his reluctant body, or the superior craft of the enemy, or any of a number of things. But he could've Projected counter-measures, he could have vastly outranged the dummy, he could have drawn out the battle, he could have, he could have, he could have. He could've even expended all his mana to create Excalibur, then melt half the arena.

 _Foolish._

Sighing, he placed the essence down. He was surprised to see it still had quite a bit of power left, even after fully healing his wound.

He then withdrew deep inside himself, tapping into deep pools of serenity to calm his mind and quell his wandering thoughts. For a long moment, he stood there, standing still, a statue hewn from a rockface.

Exhale.

"Trace, on."

He opened his eyes to look at the arrow that had appeared on his hand. The arrowhead was of the same material that had disarmed the dummy. Shirou raised the tip to his eye-and imagined the effort he would have needed to replicate something better, something harder, for a future battle.

"Trace, on." He muttered, Projecting another, with a harder tip.

"Trace, on." He repeated, discarding the fresh one, and drawing another.

"Trace, on!" _Crash!_ The arrowhead shattered in his hand, crumbling like glass before it disappeared. The concept had become unstable. His mind could not process the force needed to overcome the mysterious materials. He clenched the hand that held the arrow, and stared back at the stormy-eyed old man staring at him from the other side of the mirror.

* * *

"Saber?" He looked up and down the empty corridor. He was still shirtless-his torn up clothes had been laid up in a basin, until he could find a washing area, or at least new clothes. "Saber?"

No Servant appeared, but he knew she was close. She was evidently still displeased at him, even though he'd eked out a victory. No, her core complaint had not been that. She disapproved of working with Rin, or perhaps anyone.

He would not dwell long on the Servant. He had information to get, and the library was his next destination.

One of his questions was the appearance of not one, but two of the people he knew in life-both in very different roles than he remembered. "Fuji-nee" had never once dabbled with his world of steel and magic, and it stayed that way until he lost touch with her entirely. Yet here she was: "Overseer", a term he could've only ascribed to that infuriating priest.

Was this a phantasm world, designed to prey on his memories? If so, then the rift in his memories became all the more important to solve, for the sake of whatever mission he was supposed to accomplish. However, that conclusion was still hard to pinpoint-he needed more data.

He passed by the door where Rin had gone through. He debated on whether to knock and check up on her, but then he thought better of it. A cranky Rin was hard to deal with most of the time-a Rin who did not know him would be more hostile.

The library room was unlocked, as she'd said. Inside, there was a humble assortment of shelves arrayed along the far wall, and a study desk on the other end, upon which were heaped a handful of tomes. Shirou picked one up, leafed through a dozen pages, then placed it back down with a sigh. The words printed inside may as well be gibberish, for all that he didn't understand it. He turned and scanned the shelves, skimming over plenty of esoteric titles printed on the spines.

The sound of clinking armor alerted Shirou to Saber's reappearance. "Oh, hello, Saber. How did you..." He trailed off when the Servant ignored him and silently went to the desk. She took a pen, paper, then scribbled something down.

She wordlessly presented him the slip. It read: _Again, you have requited yourself, Shirou. I commend you. But your association with Rin Tohsaka is still problematic; until you find a way to extricate yourself from this humiliation, I shall only remain close by, watching, silent. You will know surely if and when you have redeemed yourself. Until then, try your best, and do not disappoint._ He looked up just to see Saber, her eyes closed and arms crossed, disappear, apparently content with just leaving her message.

He heaved a sigh, then pocketed the message. "I gotcha, Saber," he said loudly. "But I don't think we can get out of needing Rin just yet." He frowned, and picked up a paper on the desk with a name that had literally jumped out of the page to him.

 _Emiya Kiritsugu._

With a faint tremor in his hands, his eyes went up to the top and began reading.

Apparently it was a letter to Rin from someone named Ms. Sajyou. The woman seemed to be inquiring about certain aspects of Rin's research, going on and on about technical stuff that Shirou skipped over. Then the woman spoke about the "condition of the city", citing the "awful restrictions that continue to be imposed" by Emiya Kiritsugu and his infernal Servant. The second part of the letter sounded like a whining kid upset about having to go to school, which made Shirou wonder if two people had written it.

The letter concluded with Ms. Sajyou imploring Rin to speak out at some sort of public forum. "For the Grail's sake", Shirou repeated, wondering at the strange farewell phrase at the end.

Kiritsugu. His eyes narrowed. He sat down heavily on the chair. His body felt ten times heavier than before. His adoptive father had been a constant inspiration all his life, but through the years the man's presence had become a dull fade in his memories. Even now, as he sat there, Shirou could only recall a sad, withered face, a person who'd died too early for Shirou, leaving him with an ideal that would shape his whole future. He certainly didn't remember him as any sort of magus, and was unprepared to face him now, with his presence confirmed in this place.

He rubbed his forehead. He'd either need a stiff drink, or a long session of self-hypnotism to stabilize his inner mood. He slapped the letter down, and skimmed through all the other papers, nearly tearing them in his carelessness.

A tap on his shoulder and he saw Saber behind him, again giving him a piece of paper. Clucking his tongue, he took it and read: " _You need to rest, magus. Find a suitable place, and I shall watch over_ you."

 _"_ Why Saber," he rumbled. "That's very thoughtful of you." He looked back and saw she'd disappeared. He chuckled.

Saber had a point. Aside from the letter containing Kiritsugu's name, and the map, there was nothing else that was as informative about this world. There were no periodicals he could see, no computer he could access, and of course the books were very much things an illiterate like him could not hope to understand. It looked like Rin was the only source of information, still.

He was grateful for the Servant for bringing him out from his funk. Doubtless she didn't see it that way, but he was thankful nonetheless. He pocketed the second piece of paper and left the library.

* * *

"Rin? Ms. Rin?" He rapped on the door gently, and continued the soft rhythm for a couple of moments. It was risky, disturbing Rin like this, but the question needed to be asked.

"Ms. Rin?" He repeated. He blinked, cocking his head as the sound of footsteps came from within.

The door opened violently, with an equally stormy woman waiting beyond the threshold? "What?" Rin near shouted.

"Ah, my apologies for disturbing you-"

"Yes, you are. There is a delicate ritual I have to do, and I shan't have interruptions!"

"Of course, of course," he said, in a mollifying voice. "I just needed to know where I could retire for a bit. I'm feeling rather tired from all my exertions."

"Use the guestroom," said Rin, in the sort of exasperated tone she used to indicate her answer was clearly the obvious one, and it had been foolish to even ask.

"Ah."

"You recall where it is?" At his nod, she gestured. "Good. If you're hungry, the kitchen's downstairs, and I think the pantry's still got a few leftovers."

At the prospect of food, Shirou felt a jolt deep in his soul, but then he realized he wasn't hungry at all, yet. It was strange, like he'd eaten just before falling unconscious in that forest.

"Don't disturb me again, or I'll have to use the traps," Rin said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"You've been very helpful," Shirou said, who then bowed and made to leave.

"Oh, and Bob?" He turned his head. "I don't need to tell you this, but you're stuck in this house until I say different. And it's not just because we've things to discuss, but..." Rin looked grim as she said this. "...Don't try to go outside, even with your Servant. It's night-time, and the Fog's bound to have rolled in." And with those words, she closed the door.

"Fog?" he said aloud, with a quirk of his brows. Yet another thing to be curious about. Shaking his head, he went to the guestroom.

When he got inside, though, another problem presented itself.

As he'd noted before, there was a large queen-sized bed. It was also the _only_ bed.

"I should've asked Rin," Shirou said, tapping his forehead in frustration. _Where was Saber going to sleep?_

"Saber? Saber, if you're here, feel free to use the bed to rest. I'll try to find something here to help me sleep on the floor." Before he could even reach for the closet handle, Saber appeared right in front of it, her arms still crossed, her gaze flinty. She pointed silently to the bed. "And where will you sleep?" She closed her eyes.

He couldn't clearly recall: did Servants even need to sleep? There had been an explanation Saber made, a long time ago, or had that been Rin?

Shirou pursed his lips when it was clear he'd need to actually fight his Servant to open the closet. And he wasn't one to waste a Command Seal for something like that. So he threw up his hands, and, feeling like he'd been defeated for the first time in this place, he went on to the bed.

He left a significant space on the other side for her if she was so inclined; and he didn't even try to think about the implications for Saber lying in bed with him. He was too old for such things, and an actual, sudden fuck certainly wasn't even in his radar at the moment. He glanced at the closet, to find that Saber had already disappeared.

"My own, private little ghost," he said aloud.

Movement from beyond the foot of the bed caught his eye, and he saw Saber for a split second before she threw the pen in his face.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: A little late, but enjoy!**


	5. The Life of the Party 1

(((Interlude 1)))

A strong chorus of steel boots stomping came rumbling up the street. A host of armored figures marched in perfect unison, their silver-polished steel plate gleaming from the light of dusk, their forms massive and imposing. Each wielded different weapons, tall halberds with menacing blades, bludgeons thick as their own bodies, and bows of sophisticated craft; and yet they carried the same towering shield, large enough to cover much of their bodies.

Their procession passed through the street until they reached the intersection, upon which they halted with precise coordination. Then, with much clattering, they knelt down, and stayed there, as of sentinels sculpted from iron. Even kneeling, they towered over most of the magi who walked along their formation on the sidewalks.

On several streets parallel to this one were other groups of kneeling figures, all of them similar to the armored ones. Overlooking them, upon a building which stood opposite to the gathered troops, several armored figures stood around a table. All of them wore helmets of varying size and designs and shape, except for one.

"The last of the troops are ready, my lord," said one, who wore armor of pure white. "They are ready to be deployed, as directed."

"With your permission, my King, I suggest we concentrate the patrols in these areas," said another armored figure. He pointed to several spots on the map of the city laid out on the table. "Bucket Street and the Pleasure Districts... then pockets in a fan-like pattern, here and there. That way, no disturbance can leak into, or out of, those areas."

"A good strategy, Sir Bedivere, but we have received orders," said the beautiful, blonde-haired knight, wearing armor of blue and silver, who unlike the others, did not wear a helm. The knight's pale beauty was almost vague enough to pass as androgynous, but upon a second glance it was clear the person was a young-looking girl. And yet the blue eyes that peered out at the gathered knights, as well as the firm grip on the sword planted squarely on the ground, were harsh and steely, almost uncompromising. "The Overseer has requested my Master to help guard the Boulevards of Imagination, so we shall need to concentrate the troops there. In addition, we have been told there will be a particularly heavy Fog to come-and so, we shall not scatter the patrol in far-flung areas. We will not risk the troops against the audacity of other Masters."

"And what of the security for you and your Master tonight, my lord?" asked another soldier, who wore dark and purplish armor.

"Master will be dining at the Pavilion with the lady Irisviel Einzbern and his daughter." She paused, her harsh expression softening enough to appear doubtful. She looked around at the others. "And so... I'll only be bringing Sir Bedivere."

"But..!"

"My lord!"

The female knight sighed, and shook her head. A soft smile graced her features. "Sir Gawain, you are of course, banned from ever seeing young Illya. And Sir Lancelot, I doubt you wish to be called a 'poopy-head', again."

"But if it is for my king, then..!"

"Ah, Sir Lancelot _can_ be a bit of a lout," Sir Bedivere said. At the knight's reaction, he raised his hands and said, "It was a bad example to cavort with much of the female staff when last you met with young Illyasviel, good sir. Even you must understand that."

"And Sir Tristan, of course, will be commanding the troops. Really, the choice seems obvious even from the start," the one they called king concluded, even as the banter among her subordinates went on. She folded her hands together, and then her sword disappeared. "I must conclude this. Master shall be expecting the report. And, of course, I shall need to supervise the summoning of the next batch of troops from the Round Table."

"My King, what of the rumors?"

"Rumors?"

The knights looked among themselves, before Sir Gawain answered. "A general strike against you and your Master. It seems the reaction to our interference in the magi's affairs have gone from simmering to boiling to overflowing the runny water over the brim of the whole damned cauldron."

The King made a cutting gesture with her hand. "We are aware of the implications, and the dangers. But nothing has changed. From the moment we were summoned, we and my Master have been on a long and arduous siege. And we shall continue to serve in our capacity as Master's Servant until our strength fades.

"So do carry on, my loyal knights."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

* * *

 _CRASH!_

Everyone flinched at the loud, braying sound that echoed throughout the small shop. Matou Shinji stared, with appalled, frightened eyes, as the artifact lay in pieces on the floor, its latent magic drying up quickly water in the desert.

"Well then," his classmate said, somewhat absently, as if he hadn't just wrecked an expensive object. Shinji and the others only stared at him, utterly speechless. "Time to vamoose, I should say." And he did just that, walking as fast as he could down the shelves towards the entrance.

"Flat Escardos." The loud, chilling voice echoed through the room. At that, most of the student body flinched, as if something else had been broken, while the aforementioned man cringed, before his shoulders slumped. He slowly and grudgingly walked towards his fate, towards the owner of that voice, one which usually oozed warmth, like a mother on class-day mornings.

Tall and beautiful, the voluptuous instructor of their class sighed as she guided the erring boy towards the counter. Shinji watched him go, Professor Kiara's gentle but ironclad arm firmly clasped over the young man's shoulder.

"You have my sincerest apologies, Shinji," said a young man, blond, his face almost pretty enough to be mistaken for a girl, and made him ooze a certain otherworldly charm that Shinji envied. "By my estimation, that was a high-class mystic code Flat just broke. Your sister must be terribly disappointed to have a work of hers wrecked by that well-meaning oaf."

"My sister will do just fine, Leonardo B. Harwey," Shinji spat. "This is the sort of thing she likes, actually; and it would actually do her good to work harder to craft better things," he raised his hands, indicating the rest of the merchandise, "You can clearly see: such mediocrity! High-class my ass."

"How many times must I ask you to call me 'Leo'?" Leo said, with an exasperated sigh. "And further, am I given to believe you still hold that petty jealousy of yours? She was young when she graduated, true, but god, man, she was impressive!"

Shinji clucked his tongue, and looked towards the counter, where her idiotic sister stood behind the counter, conversing with Flat and the Professor. Leo and the others didn't know, never would know, how fortunate Sakura was for actually achieving such heights, and part of it was the blatant favoritism showed her by uncle and grandfather. Though he was the Matou heir, and would assume control upon uncle's death, Sakura would forever be known as a prodigy, praised to the heavens for her magical ability, to the point of passing her Rites of Initiation to join the ranks as one of its notable Prides.

"I can only hope to create a significantly powerful artifact myself," Leo went on, as he peered at the many objects on the shelves. " _One_ artifact would be quite fine, actually."

"As if you would be satisfied with one, Lord Harwey," Shinji said.

Leo smirked. "You know me too well, my friend."

 _I'm not your friend,_ Shinji thought dully. He looked around, hoping to find some woman to engage in conversation to get out of conversing with the pompous blond. Just then, Flat returned, carrying a common sweep and handle, and stooped to begin cleaning up his mess, like some maid.

"Wow... I really ought to thank your sister, Shinji! Even if Teach got angry, and started talking about crazy 'recompensation', she still waved it off, like it was nothing! Maybe I should thank her by buying her tea sometime, what do you think?"

"It is none of my business what _you_ do, oaf," Shinji said. "But I suppose a 'good chum' like me would be very much ungracious if I told you she probably won't accept any invitation you give."

"Ooh, that's true enough, Flat," said Leo. "I've invited her plenty of times to our estate-nothing vulgar, obviously, just to talk about her research and such-and she's always said no. Quite a disappointment, as I always wanted to plumb the depths of her particular genius."

"I'm willing to bet you also want to plumb somewhere else quite entirely, my friend," Flat said.

"Oh, do kindly-if you'll excuse the profanity-fuck off," Leo said irately. "And here I was, thinking to use my immense resources to cover the cost of the artifact if it ever came up."

"Oh, my kind and noble King!" Flat exclaimed, holding out his sweeper like it was the most precious weapon about to be consecrated by the gods, "I thank you for your endless wisdom and generosity! Truly this lowly servant cannot hope to comprehend your infinite grace!"

"Let go of my trousers, fool!" Leo said slapping at the idiot's head while Flat had begun to act like a whining, needy dog. Shinji huffed and backed away from the idiotic scene, glancing over just in time to catch Sakura's eye. He quickly looked away, frowning at a golden vase that was supposed to house a hundred custom-made curses.

He had the strongest compulsion to smash the object on the floor, but remembered that Professor Kiara was known for discipline as much as kindness. No doubt Sakura's reprieve was only just enough breathing room for Flat before the inevitable storm.

"Everyone!" the Professor called. "You must finalize all purchases now, so we can return shortly to the school! It is vital we reach home, as there is a significant amount of Fog forecast tonight! Please hurry!"

"By the way, where's that Caules gone?" Flat asked as the class shuffled towards the door. To Shinji's amusement, only a few students went to ring up their purchases with Sakura.

"He's moonlighting with Babbage and Co.," Shinji answered with a smirk on his face. "He won't be back in the dormitories until tomorrow."

"Good lord, what have they got him working on in there..? And at this hour? Poor lad's being literally worked to the bone."

* * *

Cradling a small satchel, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald emerged from Administration Headquarters with a frown. He silently acknowledged, with a practiced tilt of his head, the many well wishes sent his way from passersby, near all of them moving hastily in this twilight hour.

"That damned tiger..." he muttered under his breath.

It was obvious his mood was sour, and rightfully those sycophants who wanted something more from him than a kindly greeting steered clear once they saw his face. It was not wise to provoke the Lord Grand.

A radiant figure emerged from the shadows of a pillar next to him. It was a beautiful, blonde woman, pale-skinned, blue-eyed, wearing a long, flowing cape over silvery armor. Her hands were clasped in front of her, as if she were in prayer.

"Is something troubling you, Master?" came the woman's voice.

If Kayneth noticed the woman's flat voice, devoid of life-like animation, he surely ignored it. "It is nothing to concern yourself with, Ruler. It is merely an affair for us Masters." He hid the satchel under his robe and ushered her to a carriage waiting for them, which would take them back to his home. "Anything else to report?" he asked, after they'd been settled inside.

"None at this moment."

"Good." Then he back-handed the woman with such force that the sound echoed within the small chamber. " _That_ is for humiliating me, bitch." He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. Despite the bruise on her cheek, the blank state of the Servant's face never twitched.

"How dare you humiliate me in front of the Overseer. In front of that brat Tohsaka!" Then he slapped her again, on the other cheek, then grabbed her chin. "Why did you lie to me?"

"I was not completely sure, Master," said the Servant, speaking through a mouth that would've looked comical scrunched up in such a way in any other situation. Her expression said nothing of her reaction to being treated in this way. "As I told you, I detected a strange echo that pulsed from that specific direction of the Labyrinth. As I advised, it was only a possibility that the True Master of Archer had reached the conclusion you made."

He sagged, and with an irate grunt, pushed the errant Servant away. As much as he wanted to chastise Ruler even further, she had the rights of it. He had been a little too enthusiastic about something happening to Rin Tohsaka, and had taken the assumption that she'd lost her privilege without a healthy dose of skepticism. Kayneth was not such a fool to not see his own mistake from an objective point of view.

Still, it rankled that the upstart magus and that dim-witted Overseer had seen him fail. He would not be able to remedy that impression easily with the former, aside from formally challenging her to a duel; and it was currently too costly to deal with the latter. Especially with that price-gouging Yggdmillennia just waiting to weasel away more of his wealth.

And then there had been that arrogant Archer, whose parameters had been so much inferior even a Caster could have beaten him in close combat. Its words and actions added to the fury and humiliation.

"Driver?" he called, while appearing to dust off his hands. "Take me to Giselle's."

"Beg pardon, Lord El-Melloi, sir, but it's a Foggy night out, and we'll be walking straight through Dumper territory in order to get to Madam Giselle's," came the driver's protest.

"Ah." He glanced at Ruler, who looked very much the definition of a forgotten doll, sitting still. He snorted.

"In that case, forget the knocking shop, just take me to the Babbage warehouse." If he couldn't berate his Servant or Rin Tohsaka, he could at least charge the company for defective goods: that Lancer prototype was so hideously inept he could've destroyed it himself!

* * *

It was an alliance built from mutual distrust. They all felt a peculiar type of schadenfreude towards each other, in knowing full well that not one of them was the True Master of Assassin.

And so they formed this little charitable group, pooling their insights and intelligence to help fulfill the unsigned pact they all agreed to. They would unite to identify the True Master; but once they were known, the alliance would have end, they would have no obligations to aid each other, and the winner would go to the first to take down the True Master and take the mantle, all while possibly eliminating one's former allies.

Presently, with no credible leads, the group spent their time harassing and raiding the workshops of lesser-skilled, isolated magi. They did not even care to participate in the chaos that usually erupted nightly around the Fog zones, even if their Servant classes _were_ predominant there. In their opinion, it was a needless waste of resources for no considerable gain; a game for the mad and the opportunistic.

Among their ranks, there was a ranking of power, which lent certain individuals the unofficial authority of leading and organizing. These were the magi who held above-average magecraft and had summoned the more lethal Hassan-i-Sabbahs. After them were the magi with the same level of power, but who summoned inferior Assassins, some of them the "irregulars" who were not of the legendary assassin's order, like Judith, or Brutus, or Jing Ke. Equal to them were the magi with pitiful magecraft, and yet had summoned the first-class Hassans.

And then, below all, lowest among the low even outside the group, were the people like him.

He had summoned a worthless woman, whose only value as a Servant was her voluptuous, bewitching body. No combat ability, no true skill as an Assassin, and it was not even a Hassan-truly the trifecta of inferiority. Worse, it had an impudent need to soften him up with wet-eyed looks of hurt and tempting words whenever he tried to discipline them. He could do nothing but ally himself to others just to survive.

He yanked down the covers, exposing the Servant slapped her legs. "Wake up! Wake up, you bloody thing. It's time to go."

"Mnyaah... Master? But isn't it evening?" She did not seem to mind showing off her nakedness to her master; on the other hand he was already too used to seeing her naked body.

"We have an operation to do," he snapped, while rummaging through his supplies. "Get yourself dressed, and come _on_ , you stupid thing."

"...Yes." In a minute, the Servant had assumed its customary garb of revealing, sunlight silk and crimson, her hair and makeup already done, as if a horde of stylists had already taken care of her in the moment it took for her to rouse from bed. And yet he still frowned, seeing all her style and beauty as aggrandizing embellishments holding no real substance; and even if he was no ascetic, he was well-justified in treating the Servant as lower than dirt, a waste of time.

"You remember the plan?" he said aloud, in a tone that brooked no foolish questions. "They'll be the ones to assault Rin Tohsaka's mansion, and we'll just be the lookout. I don't expect we'll meet any of Kiritsugu's Knights, but as a precaution, I do command you to use your Noble Phantasm. Even if it doesn't work, you'll be an excellent distraction." And even if it died, at least the bitch was easy to Revive.

He had no illusions of assuming the mantle of True Master with a Servant like this. _Especially_ with a Servant like this. But with any luck, he could slowly work towards achieving a higher level of magecraft by slowly nibbling away at his fellows, so he could achieve a better station using only his skills and not his Servant's.

He didn't know why they'd decided to raid Rin Tohsaka's place, but it was common knowledge that the brat was an upstart magus whose forebear had died too early to instill in her the respect for proper authority-almost exactly like his Servant. So he had no objections to agreeing to join the raid.

As this average magus owned a wealth of inheritance accumulated over by the years by the Tohsaka clan, all ripe for the taking, he foresaw great success.

* * *

Rin Tohsaka peered through the glow of the magic circle. She read off the exact measurements of the currently fluctuating energies, and then mentally recalculated the numbers she needed to correct it. She grabbed a facet chipped from a prime jewel and flicked it over the circle.

"By the Arcanas Sixth and Ninth," she intoned, "Rise, mountain!" The circle glowed, for a second, illuminating the dark, tall shape crouching within its very center, cloaked in heavy, shadowy smoke. After a moment, the glow faded, leaving the steady hum of the binding circle.

Rin huffed, and allowed herself to relax, for but a second. She rolled her shoulders, stretched her stiff limbs, and wiped troublesome sweat from her body.

"Just a little bit more, Archer," she murmured, staring determinedly at the darkened figure. Her expression was a cocktail of various emotions wrung up by stress, and it dug clear, permanent furrows on her beautiful face. .

In the darkness, the silenced knight in red creaked his eyes open, and sighed.

* * *

She watched him carefully.

It was a mystery why she was summoned here, on this particular plane, in this form.

To be the Servant yet again to a Master who is veryf" much like "him".

The person she had failed to protect, and who had bested her, once, on that distant place.

It only seemed an instant, as on the moment directly he plunged his blade into her chest, she woke to this place, at that forest, bonded by a new Contract. It only took less than a second to process everything, to comprehend all that the Throne could provide. All the magnificent possibilities, all the fleeting permutations coursed through her mind in that instant, until she became what she is now, a new blank slate from which a new possibility would spring.

She does not know this Shirou. Yet it appeared he knew "of" her, of a Saber who was vastly different. It seemed as a feverish dream to her, then, of a time and place where she did not fail her Master; where he became the person she sees before him today.

In the end, it only takes her a few moments to reflect. Deep and infinite are the mysteries of the world, but she was only a tainted warrior, a twisted image of the King of Knights. And though warped by that distant malevolence, this form is purer, by certain measures, and she knows she holds no ill will for Shirou, who has become her Master yet again.

With this sword, she will destroy his enemies, whoever they might be.

* * *

 _The Fog deepened over the city of the magi._

 _The shadows gathered around the Tohsaka manse._

 _And within, a noble soul in red waited, a dragon right by his side._

 _Rejoice, for the time has come._

 _What has only stood shall now run._

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: This is it. This was the first chapter I did, a whimsy I tried during a low, depressing day. It was a series of images that transposed itself on my mind, scenes adding to scenes, characters moving, points of view shifting, individual actions stretching all the way to an inky-black future like a film reel dragged into a black hole. And I tried capturing a few strips, stitching them together like so, until I made this.  
**

 **The previous chapters were then made after this was done. Because I looked at the work, and realized I actually had to make a protagonist. A central character around which the story could grow. So there was Shirou. Why is he old? Well, that's the question, isn'it? I then added one more scene to this chapter here, polishing up once the story got to this point, and so here it is.**

 **Still having it hard, and am considering the "P-reon" idea I've been messaged with, so I can also work with _Godsfall_ and any other stories the readers might like. **

**I'll decide soon, hopefully, and in the meantime I hope you've enjoyed the work! There shall be a few more chapters left to round out this arc for the foreseeable future.**


	6. Conflict

(((Chapter 5)))

It was the alarm that woke him rudely, not soon after closing his eyes.

In less than a second, he had bolted out of bed, rolling a few feet along the carpet to end up in a crouched, ready pose, his hand reaching towards a knife that wasn't there. Just as he was about to Project a weapon, he paused, remembering where he was.

He was still in the lookalike Rin Tohsaka's mansion, in a room that had been offered to him. Judging by the time on the clock on the mantelpiece, he had only slept about ten minutes.

Shirou rose to full, frowning at the loud, blaring sounds that reverberated through the walls of the room. It was as an alarm klaxon in a military base, one which he hadn't expected to hear in this place, nor even in Rin's mansion.

"Saber, are you here? I'm heading out." He couldn't fault the Servant if she declined to follow. But when he tried the door, he discovered that it was locked.

The hushed sound of steel plate announced Saber's arrival. She already had her sword out, and was no doubt ready to strike. Shirou stepped back, but then thrust his hand out when he spotted something outside the window.

"Wait, Saber."

He strode towards the glass window, drew the curtains back and narrowed his eyes at the scene outside.

It was dark, pointing to night-time, and he was looking out into the front yard of Rin's mansion. The outer steel fence lay just beyond the grass, with a large, iron gate at the center; through which he could spot some shapes moving around. He saw them through the intermittent flashes of light which illuminated the night-which he saw as the work of magic.

As he watched, the gate bulged inward, and he could almost hear its screeching groan as something assaulted it from outside. The gate held, after a few moments.

Shirou looked around frantically. "Rin!" he shouted. "Rin, are you there? Something's happening outside! I have a feeling you already know, but please unlock the doors!" He figured the doors closing and locking was part of Rin's defenses, for whatever reason in her head. Well, he couldn't do much to help if he was just stuck inside here.

But it seemed like Rin didn't hear, or didn't heed him. The door remained steadfastly closed, and the view outside the window became even more alarming. Repeated flashes of light illuminated the darkness, and the gate looked dangerously close to caving inwards. Whatever protections Rin had laid on it would shatter soon.

In any case, what was really going on here? Rin had insisted that there was no sort of "Holy Grail War" going on, which was definitely disproved by that peculiar situation outside. Unless it was some sort of magus-specific conflict, of which Shirou was very familiar. And every one of those of which he was involved was troublesome at the least-and at their worst, life-threatening disasters. He hated dealing with it, especially when it involved very amoral magi and their mad tug-of-war schemes that frequently involved innocent people in the carnage.

Well, he could deal with the average Magi. Grunting, he rushed to the dresser that Saber had once barricaded. He thrust his hand in and pulled out reams and rows of clothes, looking for something he could wear. His old clothes were dirty, tattered things; and had been left behind in the bathroom, worse luck, so he had to improvise or he'd have to fight shirtless. Shirts, blouses, jackets flew out, near all of them crimson colored, most seeming too small for him, fit only for a woman like Tohsaka or a guest.

He had to settle on a long-sleeved crimson overcoat worn over a hooded black parka, then completed the ensemble with a long red scarf which he wrapped around his neck. Shirou then reinforced the clothing to a degree that would negate bladed attacks up to a certain degree. It wasn't the best of defenses, (it did not even offer an ounce of magic resistance) but the point was that he needed less of his skin to be exposed to sudden attacks, which would cause bleeding and then would be a drain in a drawn-out fight.

It wasn't the worst instance of improvisation he'd ever done-Shirou recalled a hair-raising time in the Borneo jungles when he had to make do with reinforcing a hem made from banana and palm leaves, all while nursing a belly wound and several gashes on his arms. But Shirou did have his trusted tools then, like his first-aid kit, his knives or his peacemaker. Today all he had was his magecraft and a slightly disobedient Servant.

After making sure he was fully "armored", Shirou glanced at Saber, whose face showed no expression. "I'm heading out, Rin," he said aloud, though he had a hunch Rin wouldn't answer still. He headed to the window he'd peered through, and was then surprised to see that it could be opened. He stared, brows raised, as a chilly draft swept through the opening.

He didn't take long to dwell on that apparent gap in Rin's defenses. He cautiously stepped through, and landed on the tiled roof of the mansion. Fresh, cold air filled his lungs. He looked around and was then taken aback by the sight of the fog.

The black sky he expected to see above him had disappeared in an endless blockade of white, cloudy puffs. To the left and right of him was even more of the shrouded murk, which seemed to choke Rin's mansion with its omnipresent, overbearing thickness. The fog extended even below, on the courtyard, and he was sure his own body was wreathed within it. Were it not for the presence of intruders at the gates, he was sure to have gotten the impression of intense isolation that the oppressive fog imposed, and would have wondered at the exact circumstance that led him to a forest under a clear, cloudy day, to a land where fog gripped the land like an icy vice. He was glad that it didn't seem quite poisonous, as had been his previous experiences in fog-laden environments.

Noise from the gate returned him to earth, and he turned to regard the situation. He supposed it would be foolish to try and contact the intruders, who may not be amenable to a parlay. But it was certain that they had conflict with Rin, and the one uncertainty was in if they were justified or not. He disliked to consider the possibility, but the Rin of this place was a virtual unknown save for her looks, and might just be a tyrant in manner if not in deeds. On the other hand, it would not do to be complacent and allow the assault to proceed. It was a conundrum, but Shirou couldn't afford to dwell long in it, not with the situation having already progressed this way.

He would have to take a chance; and take a side.

He looked behind him. Saber had disappeared again, leaving him to plan without her. Sighing to himself, he set to planning the defense quickly with a muttered "Trace, on."

* * *

Not a minute later, Shirou waited with tense concentration, his great bow at his side, trusting to the fog to hide him; as the continued assault on the gate contrived to break in the whole thing. With an almighty crash, the gate bent inward, pieces of warped and desiccated steel scattering all over the courtyard.

Shirou reinforced his eyesight, just in time to see a group of black shapes dart through the fresh opening, too fast for his eyes to track. Cold sweat tracked down his back-few things could move faster than a bullet, and his enhanced sight could track most bullets streaking through the air. That meant a whole other sort of trouble. Goddamned magi.

He watched carefully as several other figures stepped through the fog. Shirou could make out their shapes-they seemed human-looking enough. There were three who advanced, and he caught other shapes hiding beyond the gate. He waited, and waited, until they reached the central part of the courtyard. Then, when he was quite sure they were where he wanted them, he fired the arrow nocked in his bow.

He had several arrows in his arsenal. He had practiced their quick and accurate Projection to the point of mastery, so he would always get the arrow he needed in the exact moment his mind thought of it. There were normal flanged arrows, arrows fit to carry tiny explosives, mana-tipped arrows that could pierce through magical defenses, among a host of custom designs. Generally, they fit into non-lethal, lethal, and anti-fortress types, and the former was the type he favored most.

The first, non-lethal arrow landed-not on a fleshy body, but at the center of the courtyard, where the arrowhead detonated the mana-laden blade he had placed there. A crown of fire erupted in a blinding flash, which Shirou avoided with a deft twitch of his head.

A second later, his second arrows took flight: while the blaze stunned the three who'd come forward, a barrage of arrows sailed over their heads, each not intended to pierce but to scare.

"Up there!" someone shouted, as Shirou took aim to knock out the first three people. Not a second later and he heard the loud whistle of _something_ sailing through the air. He rolled right, eyes widening at the small daggers that landed with a _thick-thock-thick_ on the roof next to him.

He sensed movement from behind him-and a tangible presence that made his hair stand on end; he rolled over, the motion carrying him down from the roof onto the grass. He launched three blunt arrows blindly. When he landed, he Projected a small, rugged shield and his long curved katana, just in time to deflect some sort of blade that flew at him. The force impacted the shield with a dull clang. He braced against the pain that shook his bones.

"Kkh!"

He tossed the ruined shield away, and continued moving over the grass. He had no time to see if something had impaled him, though he had the presence of mind to fling a small lump of malformed metal to trigger the last traps he'd prepared: several sentient chains emerged like snakes from the grass to wrap around the three magus, immobilizing them as Rin had been. The three thus went down, becoming nonfactors for a few moments, as Shirou turned to address the lightning-fast threats bearing down on him.

It was a figure whose body was midnight-black, as if it wore a full bodysuit of that color. What was most distinct was the death's head mask it wore on its face, which overall added to a mysterious and menacing impression. It held two blades of white steel, their edges wicked in shape and purpose.

It moved quickly, far too quick for him to react. It slashed at him, forcing him to engage with his blade. Its attacks were quick and brutal, reaching a speed that he could barely match. Shirou had to adopt a firm defensive posture, a desperate maneuver to completely prevent its attacks from slipping through, but without any room to counter or evade.

Which left his back completely open to another attack. _Damn!_ He cursed in his head. He'd forgotten that there had been several of them. From the corner of his eye, he glimpsed another masked figure break through the fog, blades flashing in its hands.

Shirou couldn't-it wasn't-he had to-

There wasn't even time to pivot, Project, or do _anything-_

 _I have made a terrible mistake._

The steel of the enemy's blades gleamed.

The darkness contracted, like empty space twisting unto itself. A great crimson crescent flashed through the air, neatly decapitating the skull-figure's head with an unpleasant squelch.

Shirou quickly moved to stab into his enemy, who had been shaken by the sudden attack, and he grunted as his Projected steel pierced through unnaturally tough skin, the edge of his blade finding itself unable to strike clean through. Then the fellow lost his head, as a blade neatly scythed through the bone-white mask.

The body collapsed, and Shirou watched as motes of light steamed from its bloodied remains. "...A Servant," he muttered in realization. He had been fighting a super-human being. He turned to Saber, who took position next to him. She had appeared in all her armored glory, expelling much of the fog around them. In her crimson-tinged black armor, she cut a more fearsome figure in this fog-laden night, like an accursed, demonic knight on the warpath.

"Be glad we are compacted, magus. Such recklessness is distressing for perhaps any other Servant to endure," said Saber.

"What happened to 'not talking'?"

Saber rolled her eyes. "We are not _in_ Rin's mansion anymore, Shirou. And besides, even you must admit you cannot defend yourself against a dozen or so Servants by yourself. It would be childishly irresponsible for me not to intervene."

Then, as if she were a maid cleaning up cobwebs from the walls, Saber swung her sword left and right, deflecting each thrown knife from reaching him. Shirou saw that there were more of the skull-masked fiends lurking in the fog, hunched and waiting like Death's children milling about.

"Servant Assassin," said Saber. "Yes, I speak to all of you. It would be wise to withdraw, for I shall glory in reaping the reapers."

Shirou, recalling the tattered remnants of his plan, Projected his bow and another-a specialized arrow fitted with the fragment of a mystical sword-which he quickly fired in the direction of the gate. The arrow landed harmlessly on the ground, whereupon it burst into a cacophony of the most unsightly, ghastly shrieking, as surely befit the banshee said to have been trapped in that magic blade.

The magi lingering by the gate screamed and shouted too, turning to flee from the unearthly sound. That was one part of the plan that had been achieved, at least.

"Stop running, you bastards!" one of the bound magi said. Shirou's attention turned to them. _What should he do now_? He glanced back towards Saber, intent on supporting her, and finding that she didn't really need it.

Four of the masked figures lay on the ground behind her, already diminished in death, their cracked and bloody masks a testament to Saber's efficient brutality. Saber was currently disemboweling another, who had an unnaturally large arm, whose cry rivaled Shirou's Projection.

"So it is you, Hassan. I rejoice in meeting you again. I shall accept your defeat with great exultation," said Saber. She took hold of the irregular arm and then hacked it away.

Shirou's eyes widened, his arm holding out in warning when he saw the danger. A dagger, attached to a chain, had thrust up from the fog, striking at Saber's back. It had come from another of their foes, which had lurked in the fog unseen. The Projected shield was too far to make a difference, he could not alert her quick enough.

But then, Saber twisted on her heels and grabbed the dagger. With a grin, she then pulled the chain-and the enemy-towards her. She calmly watched her blade impale the wretch, then wrenched her blade through the side. After, she looked down with surprise at the shield that hit the front of her armor. She looked up and narrowed her eyes at him, who was frozen in the pose akin to a man who'd thrown a discus.

"Very good, Shirou."

He turned away, feeling none too pleased at feeling helpless. He even felt quite winded, his breath coming out in rapid gasps, which he endeavored to keep subtle under a stoic manner. It would not do to act out the part of an older man in truth.

And yet, he consoled himself that he was facing Servants, beings so far beyond him that he could not hope to defeat even one. The ones whom Saber had defeated without trouble had been so close to killing him-and he had not even counted on there being more than one.

Still, at least his tactics had worked on the magi. The three he'd bound had been unable to free themselves. Sensing no other danger, he walked towards them, an arrow nocked and aimed.

* * *

"Who the hell are you? Are you her Servant?"

"That's a freaking Saber! Why were we not told Tohsaka had a Saber?"

"I am an associate of Tohsaka's," he said, trusting his voice sounded authoritative enough. With magi, one could never be sure. "I trust I do not need to explain why you lot are trussed up like so. For now, I shall prefer it that you remain so until the proper authorities can-"

The scream stopped him; the sound was so very heartfelt that it froze the blood in his veins, and he had the rather unpleasant sensation of his hair standing on end. For the sound had recalled bitter memories in his mind, as if he were once again faced with his worst fears.

Before he knew it, he was already darting forward as fast as his reinforced legs could take him, those three magi quite forgotten in his haste. He barely heard Saber's call, as he drifted towards the source of that scream. The thick, omnipresent fog split and coalesced around him, blinding him easily, leaving him dumb and grasping for direction. _Where was-?_

"You stupid hag!" someone was saying just ahead. He ran forward, straight for the noise. "Get yourself up from the ground! We've got to leave!"

"I-I'm sorry, Master!" someone, a woman's voice, said. "It's just that-before-I thought I saw someone-in the fog-a horrible thing-!"

"Yes indeed, the fog is cursed, and that is why we must flee! Get up! I shan't be paying to revive you again, you'd bloody well mark my words, you useless cunt!"

He flew forward, putting faith in his instincts. "Trace, on," he muttered, though it was as a cry reverberating from deep in his heart. Then, not a moment later, two forms appeared, suddenly thrusting out from the fog and into his sight.

"What's going on here!" he roared, his eyes sizing up the situation. There was a woman in scantily clad dress crouched on the ground, and beside her was a man, whose feet was resting on the former's back.

"A Servant!" the man said, jerking backward. "Tohsaka's, if that red garb's an indication." The man adjusted his sleeve, revealing the crimson command spells on the back of his hand, which glowed brightly in the fog. "Get up, Assassin! At the least, distract this one with your vaunted charms." When the woman did not move, he gave her a kick that sent Shirou's blood boiling. "Now!"

"Sir, I would suggest _not_ doing that before me," he pronounced with a disgusted glare.

As if not hearing-or choosing to ignore him-the magus shouted, "Defend me, Servant! I command you!"

A Servant? Shirou mulled that over-while it was true that technically a Servant was as a familiar bonded to its magus, and the latter had every right to do with it as they wished-the similarity did not extend beyond that. Servants had minds, hearts, of their own, and could strike back if they wanted to. He did not need the countless cherished moments of Saber chiding him to be reminded of that fact. And thus a defenseless Servant was as any person, and to be mistreated in this way, right in front of him, was bound to arouse his sense of justice.

And so he strung the bow tighter, ready to pierce a painful bolt into the magus shoulder, or wherever he needed. He watched as the woman tried to rise, but trembled even then, like a newborn faun on unsteady legs. "Stop that," he said.

"Oh? So you care for this piece of trash, do you? Well then, Servant," At that, the magus hauled the woman up by the shoulder, then locked his arm around her neck, before pressing a dagger under her chin. "You may rest assured that I will not harm this one, if you shall allow me to leave. No, wait, you must escort us out of this zone, through the fog, then out-or I will slit this one's throat."

Of all the reactions he expected from the magus, this was the least expected, and also one which almost made him roll his eyes.

"What's your answer?" the magus demanded, when Shirou did not speak.

For a good, long moment, he glanced at the Servant. She looked surprised to see her Master's blade threatening her. The picture looked frankly ludicrous on the surface of it, for weren't Servants really tough and hardy bastards? That masked figure he'd just fought had skin so tough even his sword had barely made a dent. And while it was tough to assume the delicate-looking woman over there would have similar defenses, Shirou had personally no way to see if _she_ were really a Servant. This could all be just a ruse, but for what end? He did not sense anyone nearby.

Should he take the situation as it was, or assume the worst from the start? The magus' request to be escorted sounded dangerously like a ruse. Only a naive fool would accept; especially in this fog.

Well, people could rightly accuse him of being a naive fool. But not today.

"Are you really his Servant?" he asked the woman.

"Don't answer that!" the magus snapped.

"I merely asked, as a courtesy. I would not have killed her if she were an ordinary woman; if she is a Servant, you're both going to die, as I did to your comrades." He smiled, though his mask hid it. "So it is quite useless to do that, magus."

His words had the needed effect, as the woman paled, and the man trembled, his face twisting.

And when his hand, the hand with the Command Seal, lifted up in a terrified spasm, hawk-eyed Shirou didn't miss the chance, and shot the broad-tipped arrow which promptly sliced clean-through his wrist.

He'd modified the arrowhead silently during the confrontation, adding properties from a fragment of a blade with a hot, cauterizing edge. It was some sort of relic wielded by Herakles, something he'd traced on an assignment on the Turkish countryside. Without it, the fool's blood would have splattered all over, causing such a dreadful, bloody mess.

"Ah! Aaaah!" The man squealed, releasing the woman and clutching his steaming stump of an arm. The woman sagged to the ground, wide-eyed. When Shirou took a step forward, the man yelped and fled into the fog, leaving his Servant behind. He wondered if it would have been better to knock the man out.

He approached the woman. Though he'd done that to save her, he had no illusions about Servant-level beings. His arrow was still trained on her, hopefully aiming to stun her if she was hostile. But the woman made no move, and watched him approach with a look of confusion.

"Can you stand?" he said, frustrated that he wouldn't be able to offer a helping hand. He wondered if Saber was near; she could be the one to cover the woman. But his Servant wasn't here.

"I... yes, I can..." the woman said faintly. Shirou blinked, then sighed when he looked closer at the woman's dress. He had spotted glorious cleavage, and of course there was a fair amount of smooth, luscious skin. He was no spring maiden, and yet he knew he could not be distracted now, not with this fog.

It had been a risky move, going after the man's Command Seal. There were a thousand different outcomes to such a gamble. The Servant's reaction to it would be well beyond his calculations.

"How do you feel?" he asked cautiously. "I apologize if I did that-however I could not just stand by and let him do that to you. Even if he was your Master."

She smiled thinly. "You're right... By all rights I should be mad at you for doing that to Master, and yet, and yet..." Her expression turned bitter. "I'm such a horrible Servant that I... don't even want to, or more like, I don't even have the strength to do it... In fact, I even feel _relieved!_ Relieved, that he shan't have the rights to Revive me again. Oh, he'll probably summon another 'me', but that shall be her problem, then." She sobbed. "I'm sorry, strange red one, you probably don't want to hear a useless woman ramble on like so. Could I ask you to just leave me here, to disappear in peace? I don't think I want to feel the pain of being executed again. I realize it is an unusual request from an enemy..."

Oh. Now Shirou felt bad. He supposed he should have recalled that fact about Servants-without a Master, their conduit to the world was severed, and they would disappear eventually. He hadn't realized that "saving" the woman would actually doom her to another fate, though it didn't seem she minded.

"No, I shall not kill you," he said, with a sigh. "But at the least we can let you pass on in peace. Come, the mansion's not too far. Let us away from this fog."

She stared. "Oh, my lord, I-I cannot thank you for your kindness."

Shirou snorted, and stooped to pick up the severed hand with one hand. The moment his hand touched the skin, fresh searing pain shot through his arm, a sensation so hot and intense he doubled over on the ground, shouting.

His palm felt as if it had been welded to the man's unfortunate hand. Welded, but also flattened in a hydraulic press, while also being sprayed with magma, while also being impaled by a thousand spikes of mercury, along with a hundred dozen epithets for pain; which all happened at once in that single moment.

Dimly, he was aware that the woman was screaming as well. Images of a bedridden Illya filled his mind, of Rin caked in blood, of Saber's last smile to him...

"Rragh!"

He wrenched his hand free from the bastard's, and reeled backward to land on his bum, feeling like his magic circuits had been exhausted, refilled, then exhausted again, all in repeated cycles. He fought to catch his breath, wondering what the hell had happened.

He looked down, and saw that the woman was unconscious. His eyes then went to the severed hand, and saw something strange.

The Command Seals writ upon it had disappeared.

He tore off the stifling long sleeve on his arm, as if he were trying to cool off his arm in the night air, thus exposing his own Command Seals.

He stared.

The man's seals now existed there, bright and red like wet blood, superimposed on his other Seals like it were freshly painted there.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Apologies for the delay, but I have been busy trying to figure out what to do. I'll probably have a solid plan for my situation soon.**

 **In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the new chapter!**


	7. Seven Wishes

(((Chapter 6)))

Shirou felt a tad foolish, carrying the voluptuous woman through the fog, and back through the ruined gate. It was rather like a marauding barbarian returning triumphantly to camp with an abducted maiden in his arms. And what was more-he was even carrying the cold hand of her former Master in his pocket. Truly he would be weaving its bones into his collar soon enough!

The black Saber was the first to greet him, standing before the captured magi with her sword planted on the ground. She had a disapproving expression on her face, and the scowl deepened when she sighted him, and his "prize".

"Before you ask," Shirou said with a tired sigh. He glanced at the magi, who were seemingly unconscious. "Would it be a bother for you to carry her back to our room?"

Saber stared, her mouth flapping open then shut without making a sound. She then grunted, and disappeared. He stared at the space where she'd been. So that was to be her answer.

He glanced at the magi. Well, he probably wouldn't expect any mischief from them. Not yet, anyway. The mystic codes' bonds held, and their concussions seemed fresh to his eyes.

 _Back to the room with the lady, then._

Once he'd vaulted the roof and went back through the window, he laid the Servant on the bed. She looked to still be breathing, which was a sort of relief. He did use some of the fabric he'd unearthed hastily to cover her body-for warding the chill and his curious gaze at her more generous assets, and then doubled down by burying her beneath Rin's generous covers.

He looked around. "Saber," he said aloud. "I assume you're here. This is an enemy combatant, but in some strange event-well, I'm not sure." He looked at the back of his hand, where the magus' former Seals had already faded in intensity, blending into the mess of scribblings tattooed on his arm. "I think... well, you must think it strange... I think she's become my Servant. Perhaps."

It was a thing he hadn't seen happen in his experience. But later lectures with Illya and Rin did give him the impression that such a thing was frankly difficult for him to manage. Getting to support a spiritual existence on the level of a Servant was already too much for his meager quality magic circuits.

Two was a downright impossibility.

He heard the telltale sound of paper striking the carpet. He turned around and saw a balled-up piece, from which he read, " _Yes. I know._ _I sense it too._ "

"You did? I suppose I should be thankful for that." He frowned. He didn't feel tired-well, no more than the usual after a strenuous battle. He was readily expecting to start feeling the long, alarming drain of his mana from the dual contracts, but so far he felt much the same.

The door to the room abruptly opened-the suddenness actually ending up summoning Saber in a cloud of smoke to stand before the doorway, her sword bared. Even Shirou had quickly Projected his bow, after which he relaxed when he saw that no attack was forthcoming.

" _Alright, you bastards!"_ he heard a voice yell from outside the window. " _I've told you time and time again: you do not piss off Rin Tohsaka!"_

He heard the sound of great doors slamming open, and rushed to the window right on time to see a familiar red-shape bursting out onto the courtyard, suffused by a magical glow; followed by a smaller shape, one which he recognized to be Rin.

"Wait, what?" he could hear Rin say, as she beheld the relatively empty scene. There was the ruined gate, the bound magi, and the signs of battle, but it looked like she'd gone out with guns blazing-only to find no targets on the other side.

He glanced at Saber, who narrowed her eyes silently, then leapt out the mansion window yet again. When he landed on the ground with a thump, Rin whirled towards him, her hand held out; the Servant turned, as well, wielding two swords on its hands. But then she stopped, when she saw who it was.

"Oh, it's you, Bob. Where'd you come from?" She looked up, and her eyes widened. "The window? The window! Oh, please don't tell me you used that to get out. Mankind invented doors for a reason. And what's with that get-up? You almost look like him- Wait, I'm getting sidetracked." She pointed at him. "What's going on, Bob? What happened to the invaders? I sensed them assault my Boundary; and thus I had to make do with Archer in his state, but then I find nothing out here."

Shirou glanced at her Servant, whom he'd only seen for a brief second before Saber had destroyed it. Frankly, he was surprised it was the same Servant-he was sure it had been killed. Well, it _did_ look the part: with the long, flowing red coat, worn over a black suit and pants, it looked like the Archer in his past, who had served Rin in the War. There was a unique difference now in that it wore some sort of leather mask shaped like a medieval helmet, which obscured its face entirely.

He gestured to the three captive magi. "As you can see, Rin, I was alerted by the infernal alarm, after which I spied these three leading an assault into your house. I then proceeded to plan a quick neutralization scheme, which accomplished the aim of driving off capturing these guys, and then driving off the rest of their fellows."

Rin pursed her lips grimly at the magi. "What of the Servants?"

"There were several." Shirou indicated a silent Saber. "Saber managed them; they seemed to be of Assassin class." He'd already gotten over the fact that there seemed to be more than one Assassin-this was a strange place after all, so it shouldn't matter that it was changing what he remembered in his mind.

"Ah. Well, with its strength, it's not a mystery they were destroyed. Your Saber killed Archer, after all." The Archer in question cocked its head, though offered no words. "With that settled, Archer, search those guys for any usable items, then kick them out. I can't believe I had to botch your Revival just to deal with nothing..." She rubbed her forehead, then looked at him with a smile.

"I guess I should thank you, Bob. It wasn't like I couldn't have handled them by myself, but I am touched you decided to take care of it for me. Still doesn't mean I trust you com...plete...ly..."

Rin had trailed off, her eyes suddenly fixated on his arm-the one that held the Command Seals. Her eyes blinked rapidly, her expression frozen in what he recognized to be incredulity.

"What... WHAT?" The sudden shout raised an eyebrow from Saber. Rin approached, her eyes still on his arm, her hands held out like she were afraid to approach for fear of being burned; and yet deciding to carry on regardless. Shirou looked down at his arm, and wondered why she was acting that way.

"This is... What is going on, Bob?" She wrenched her eyes away to look at him, her eyes wide. She flicked her gaze over to Archer and barked, "Archer, forget them! Just take care of them, then get back to my workshop! Let's not talk out here," she continued, ushering him towards the door. She looked to be hyperventilating. "Too many wandering eyes in the fog, I need to see... And I've still got to repair the... But I need to... Oh dear..."

* * *

They'd hardly cleared the door when Rin had already seized the wrist containing his Command Seals, and pushed her face as close to it as she was able. Her eyes feverishly ran over the design of the Seal, and she traced the designs faintly with her finger.

"It's big?" She whispered, pulling up his sleeves to see the continuation of his Command Seal.

"It reaches all the way up to my shoulder," he said helpfully. He hesitated, then said, "This is _one_ of the questions I was to ask you, by the way. I know this is a Command Seal, but I do not know why this is as large as it looks." And why it had taken that other magus' Seal as well, but he couldn't mention that to Rin yet.

"This is a hundred... no, a _thousand_ Command Seals, Bob. And that's just an estimation. There could be more, could be less. My head hurts just looking at that amount of raw magic." She stared at him in wonder.

"A thousand?" he said in a whisper, his face no doubt mirroring Rin's expression. "Impossible."

"It should be, but it is." Rin took a deep breath, as the silence sunk in. The door opened, breaking the spell, and Archer walked in. "I..." Rin made a gesture like she was in deep thought. "I... sort of believe you now, Bob. At the least, I believe you're not working _for_ anyone. _No one else_ would have sent you out for any sort of scheme, not with you having _that_. Even the lowliest of homonculi's made all the more precious when they have this, and they don't."

"So what does it all mean? I'm afraid I'm still rather clueless about any of this. This arm of mine, that labyrinth, you telling me there's no Holy Grail War, that whole thing with Lord whatshisface and that Overseer, and the Fog outside. I don't know any of that, truthfully."

"Well," Rin said faintly. "To start with, that hand of yours holds a great amount of power. But Command Seals are Command Seals, which would only mean, on a technical level, that you could Command your Servant to do a whole lot of things. Supremely useful in battle. But it is the _reason_ for there being so many that interests me more.

"As far as I know, only the Overseer's Office can hand out Command Seals, and even as a reward it is highly regulated and monitored. It draws Power and Authority directly from the Holy Grail, you see. Theoretically infinite power, but we don't want to risk using it all up.

"Now what you have there, are a whole bunch of Command Seals. And that means you've got a body that many of us would sacrifice our _souls_ to acquire. It's brimming with potential: is your body a living conduit to the Grail, or is it merely a very good superconductor of mana? Are the Command Seals actually naturally occurring in your body, and if so, how did it establish a connection with the Grail, and end up allowing you to summon your Servant? Etcetera, etcetera. Now, of course, my mind's still just reeling from all the possibilities here, and I'm trying to make sense of it all, but the implications, they're very much outstanding. Unbelievable! Insane!"

He stared at Rin, who was giggling a bit madly. "Overseer's Office?" he repeated.

She paused, then sighed. "Right. I still don't quite believe your story about being oblivious, but sure, I'll humor you. Ahem. This City is known by many names, but to anyone and everyone who lives here it is The City. Some people call it the 'Iron City', the 'Magus City', the 'Magicians' Quarter', and so on and so forth-to me, it is The City, for there is nothing else like it.

"The City was built a long time ago by a group of magi, who had acquired the Holy Grail. This City was in fact, built from a wish by one of them, to be a place where magi could live free from petty distraction, from regulation. Everyone here is a magi, in some degree, descended from that group, or from those who settled here thereafter.

"Right, right, the seven Wishes. I got ahead of myself. The 'legend' of it was that the group of magi who acquired the Grail numbered seven, and that each of them got one Wish of the Grail. A remarkable, all-powerful Wish, that could give birth to miracles.

"The first Wished for the City, as I said. The second Wished for all mundane needs to be satisfied, while one is inside the City. By that, I mean no one gets hungry, nor thirsty, nor do we get sick, unless we are poisoned by our fellows."

He blinked. "No... hunger?"

"So we can divert more of our time to our research," Rin said with a shrug. "Well, we can still eat, if we want to, but we don't _need_ to, not anymore. Eating and drinking are past-times, are indulgences, and no longer necessities to live.

"Anyway, the third magus Wished for limitless resources. And so the Grail built the Labyrinth, which exists Outside and Under the City. You've already seen it, that forest, but that was only _one_ room in the Labyrinth, but there are an infinite number of other variations that exist, mana founts everywhere, areas where one can mine rare ore, where endless variations of herbs and trees and plants exist, where magical beasts beyond one's imagination lie ready to be hunted for their parts. Now the Grail did not give it all to us on a silver platter, and we must work to get it (and we can even get killed), but our researches can never be depleted of important material, if we are deserving of it."

"I see." Such a thing would definitely go hand in hand with the "no hunger" clause. It actually sounded more like a utopia for magi like Rin, who lived for the work. "Let me guess: one of the other Wishes was for 'no death'?"

Rin scoffed, like he'd told a bad joke. "Not even the Grail can grant such a thing. That is Sorcery, and it is forbidden in the City." The answer was like an echo of the old Rin had scoffed at him on that very moment. "The fourth of the group Wished that the City be exclusively for the magi's use, that no external concerns would plague it, mundane or otherwise. Complete protection and an assurance of indefinite tenancy, for as long as the Grail existed. And so, it is said, and no magus now contradicts it: that this City has been excised from the Real."

Ah, now there was one question answered. This was a Closed Boundary, a space that was shorn away from the normal world. They were usually freak anomalies, like those ley-line tears, but sometimes an accomplished magus could endeavor to manifest a small, workable place. To be able to manifest it on a larger scale was truly noteworthy, but it had quite alarming implications for Shirou.

For instance, had he been drawn here through that method? Had Rin? Had Fujimura Taiga? But then-what of Emiya Kiritsugu?

"The fifth member, who mistrusted the others, demanded of the Grail his Wish: that no magus would be able to reach heights far greater than the rest. He feared the potential the magi would get from this utopia, and perhaps he was right. Yet there was no tangible effect from the Fifth Wish, unfortunately for that magus, even when the Grail had clearly accepted the Wish itself. For time and again, we have had genius magi who've made brilliant breakthroughs that pushed the envelope for any who followed. And so the Fifth Wish has become something of a joke passed down through time. To 'make the Fifth', to expend a lot of energy, effort, time, for nothing.

"The Sixth Wish, the Wish that will address your question about the Overseer, brings us to the Master-Servant system that is the backbone of our great community." Rin nodded at Saber. "For the sixth person wished for more Wishes, if it were possible. And though the others upbraided them for the ill-use of a Wish, the Grail did grant it, though not in the way they envisioned.

"The Grail established it: there would be seven who would receive the Wishes, the same number as in the original group. They would imitate a ritual passed down from ancient times, where seven Servants would be summoned to support the Grail. In exchange for summoning the Servants and assuming the responsibility of protecting their roles, they would be granted one Wish. And so were born the 'True Masters', each for one class. Saber. Archer. Lancer. Rider. Caster. Assassin. Berserker. In this city, there will only be one True Master of Saber, of Archer, and so on."

"And you're the True Master? Of Archer?"

Rin's eyes fluttered. "Right. You were there; you heard. Yes, I am the True Master. At the beginning, the magi planned to take advantage of the rules, that their successors would access the Wish granted them by the Grail through normal succession. But the Grail demanded something else, something far worse."

"Worse?" he echoed. Rin smiled, and it was a bitter smile. She crossed her arms.

"In order to take the rank of True Master, the previous Master must be killed."

The words cast an ominous pall on the conversation. Shirou stroked his unshaved beard. "I see."

"The magi then made their own rules. In order to avoid the inevitable bloody conflict that would surely arise, to prevent chaos from thriving, the True Masters' identities were to be hidden at all times. The Grail provided the rank of the True Master of Ruler to one other magus to ensure there would be an appropriate oversight."

"So there's a Ruler class?" Shirou asked. He turned that over in his head, imagining a wise king or queen who'd take up the role. He knew Saber-no, Artoria would definitely fit that mold.

Rin nodded. "And the Lord Grand you met is the current True Master. The Master of Ruler is the only one who knows the identities of the other True Masters, and is the first to know if a True Master has been bested, and will therefore know who has taken on the mantle. He is expressly forbidden to reveal their identities, and to that end, an Overseer was further appointed, to be a check on the power of the Ruler, if ever they abused their position. Our current overseer is Fujimura Taiga, that woman who showed up at the end."

"Right."

Rin cocked her head at him. "... And so, every magus who lives in this city is granted leave to summon their Servants through the Grail, using Command Seals issued by the Overseer's Office. To that end, Command Seals are a precious commodity, which explains my interest in your rather large collection."

"...Do the True Masters fight among each other?" He had a sinking feeling there would actually be a War, even if it was not in a form he was familiar with.

"No. As I was about to say, a magus can only summon one Servant, and only one, in their lifetime. One is the limit. The Class of Servant is therefore fixed-when I summoned my Archer, I could not summon anyone else. If he died, (as he did just today) I could simply Revive him, at cost, but I could not contract with another Servant, nor could I summon another. There is only... conflict... when Masters aspire to the rank of True. Yet one must have the appropriate Servant, for example, a Master of Archer may only challenge and take up the mantle of True Master of Archer, and nothing else. Killing a True Master of another class will not grant them the rank."

"I see. I think I see." Shirou sighed. "And with identities obscured, Masters have to take a guess if someone within their Servant's class may be the True Master. Is that why those guys attacked you? But wait, Saber called them Assassins..."

"Ehh... those guys were just troublemakers, not real challengers. You see that type a lot in this city, those with no aspirations for the True rank, or those who are content with their own research. I am confident no one yet knows my identity." Shirou was amused to see this Rin puff out her chest, like she were proud of the fact. "And if eyes are on me, then it is only suspicions. There are... perhaps twenty other Masters of Archer who have more 'powerful' Servants than mine. As you have demonstrated, a strong Servant is no certainty for True Masters." She grinned fondly at her Servant.

Looking at her, she was the image of youthful strength, which answered the question of why that True Ruler Master or whatever had seemed so hostile with his words. Someone would have needed all their available talents and resources, using them with much cunning, and working in tandem with their Servant, to discover and unseat a previous True Master. And with Rin so young, it was easy to overlook her, underestimate her, and to further feel insulted when she got a little too precocious.

"...Are you the youngest of the True Masters?"

"Oh no, I wouldn't know that. True Masters do not know each others' identities; only Ruler's True Master does. It's to 'Cradle the Mystery' as the stories said. Oh, and speaking of that, before I forget, after the Sixth Wish, the Seventh Wish was lost to time and recollection. No one knows who that wish is, nor less who the magus was. And that's how the stories tell of our City. Have any more questions?"

"What wish did you make?"

She cleared her throat. "That's none of your business," she said bluntly.

"Oh, that's alright," he said placatingly. He wanted to ask about Emiya Kiritsugu, and was trying to find the right way to ask when Rin sighed, cast a forlorn look at his arm, then said:

"Listen, while I would like to discuss things further with you and your fascinating arm, I do still have work left. I've got to repair the Gate, then finish this one's Revival ritual. It got interrupted when those morons attacked, and I had to get him ready with only a fraction of his power. Which became moot when you ended up defending the mansion, so there it is. There's..." her eyebrows shot up. "There's an intruder in my mansion. How the..." She closed her eyes and massaged her temples. "They're going for the second floor! Through the window...!"

Shirou was already running up the stairs-with Saber already leaping far ahead of him. He sent his silent gratitude to her back, thankful that she did not need to be told, and Projected his bow to support her against whatever was coming.

 _Why had he forgotten to close the window?_

In the brief moment between Saber barging through the door and his following, he saw faint tendrils of fog sweeping through the outside hall, and heard the clash of steel.

Shirou rounded the corner and saw Saber at the foot of the bed. The Servant herself had awoken, clutching the covers around herself. Then his eyes went to the threat.

Thick fog had entered through the window, now filling the guest room; and in the midst of it, wreathed in it, was a strange apparition. It looked like a young, perhaps prepubescent girl, wearing a black, midnight cloak like the Assassins he fought. It held a small, serrated knife in its hand, and cocked its head at Saber like a puzzled pigeon. Then its eyes saw him, and in the next moment, it seemed to be pulled back by the fog, like someone had yanked it from behind, and a strong draft blew through the window.

Rin shoved past him, stomping towards the window and shutting it close, before she raised her arms, mumbled some spells, and light bloomed from her hands. A moment later, she sighed, as the last remnants of the Fog dissipated, though it was still thick outside.

"Damn it, I knew I should have installed some at the windows... Should be careful about the Fog, Bob. Always. There're some strange and finicky things there, and it's not all insane magi or Servants." Rin turned around, hanging her head against the window dejectedly, before she stiffened, her eyes catching the woman's on the bed.

"...Who the hell is that?"

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: And another.**

 **At this point, the astute can easily guess a predictable flow to one aspect of the story. Yes, Shirou will be acquiring more Servants to fill his "stable". Some might even claim he'd gain at least one from every Class, and I wouldn't be able to call you a liar.**

 **And that's why I'm opening this story to reader-submitted suggestions.**

 **I've already got the story all thought up, an outline vague in the distance, so I know what's coming. What is definite are that the spots for Saber and Assassin (already acquired), Rider, Avenger and Alter-ego are already set: they're important to the plot, and their identities will be shown as the chapters progress.**

 **What is less clear to me, and one which I might use as incentive for my upcoming P-reon (nothing solid on that yet though), are the identities of others. That is to say, the slots for Ruler, Archer, Lancer, Caster, and Berserker. This is not to say they are unimportant to the plot, but that according to my intentions, they may only fill a secondary role.  
**

 **So to that end, I'll try to make this fun for the readers-please suggest suitable Servants to fill the rest of the Class slots. Criteria are:**

 **1.) Must be from across Fate as already published or released-and no Tsukihime, KnK, nor any crossover from other media**

 **2.) No homebrew Servants, though I will strongly consider plausible alternate containers for established Servants, like the mobile game's Caster-class Cu Chulainn. Try and convince me through intriguing fluff or however you prefer.**

 **3.) None of that demiServant or PseudoServant hogwash, because they'll very likely be sharing faces with actual magi in the story**

 **4.) Finally, they must fulfill an actually interesting dynamic with this Shirou**

 **If I particularly like a suggestion, I'll credit them for it, and write them into the story. In any case, enjoy, and look forward to more (and my P-reon, but I haven't decided yet)!**


	8. Louise

(((Chapter 7))) **  
**

Shirou looked from the Servant on the bed, to Rin.

A million thoughts raced through his mind.

Could he trust Rin with this next secret? He didn't even know if it _was_ a secret. He had yet to confirm that this woman was his Servant now, but would he be warranted in revealing to Rin that he had his suspicions?

" _We may only have one Servant_ ," Rin had said, during her explanation. Shirou wondered if it was an iron rule, or if there were exceptions.

And then, suppose that he did conceal some aspect of the truth from Rin. What would her reaction be, when she found out about it? His own Rin could well be very displeased about such deception, even if she would privately applaud him for applying discretion. It was a mark of how far he'd grown from the idealistic youth that his Rin no longer quite thought bad of him for being honor-bound in some things, even to the point of shunning deceit-because she knew he could dissemble when it really mattered.

Did it matter now?

Could he count on the True Master of Archer, who might have callously killed someone for the selfish reason of gaining a Wish?

Perhaps his whole perception of this magus calling herself "Rin Tohsaka" was colored by his previous relationship with another, similar entity. Though this one seemed as Rin Tohsaka down to the "T", she was a different person. Regretfully, nostalgia must out, while he lived in this strange place.

As long as he could not correct her calling him "Bob", he shouldn't see her as "Rin".

"A Servant I recovered, from its Master," he declared, after making his decision. "As it was in a sorry state, and as I was sure that I had destroyed the Master's hold on it, I brought her back here for recovery."

"Is it because of the great saggy tits? It's the tits, right?" Rin said. Saber sighed, behind him. Before he could answer indignantly, Rin continued, "Well, not important, I should be asking: how sure are you it's not been ordered to infiltrate?"

"Because I destroyed the hand containing his Command Spells," Shirou replied.

Rin's brows raised, seemingly impressed. "...Right. Well, that just makes her a Stray Servant, Bob. You should terminate it, quickly, before it can devise a crafty scheme."

"Stray Servant?" he echoed, with brows raised.

"You should really look up a tome or two sometime soon," Rin said, exasperated. "I can't be holding your hand all the time. Okay." She frowned at the Servant on the bed, who only stared back wide-eyed. "Circumstances like you've described can sometimes occur, in which bond between Master and Servant is severed. Most times, contract is re-established. In the event that it is not, it is generally understood that the Servant will fade of its own volition, unable to even be Revived by its Master-because the Command Seals signifying the Contract have been destroyed. And unless they find a fresh magus who has not yet summoned their Servant, they are doomed to that fate.

"But there are some Servants who can contrive means of acquiring the tremendous amount of mana they need to survive: these are the Stray Servants. Whether through sporting Independent Action as a skill, or escaping into the Labyrinth and feeding off mana founts, or through leeching off of unsuspecting magi, these Stray Servants become troublesome existences that can spark off needless conflict if left alone. There's no strict rule about it, but it is generally understood that Stray Servants, if they are found, should be dealt with quickly."

"I see..." Shirou mused, stroking his beard. "Well, I did promise her shelter for until she fades, so she won't become a Stray Servant, I can assure you Rin."

Rin goggled at him. "I hope you understand you're not being kind, at all, Bob. You're not suggesting I risk this one becoming a problem and getting traced back to me?"

He almost snapped at Rin's coldheartedness, then remembered that this Rin meant well. He'd seen what a Servant like that Gilgamesh could do, and letting Servants wielding that kind of power alone was just like releasing a bomb to the public.

"She will fade," he insisted. "It won't be long. She has been... mistreated by her Master. This is the only comfort I can give her, Rin."

Rin rubbed her knotted forehead. After a moment, she shook her head and sighed. "Fine. Whatever. I'll be busy, so I can't think on this just yet. I'll let her stay for a few hours, or however long it takes. But if I find out that Servant's done trouble and it's traced to this house..."

"That shan't happen," he said firmly, glancing at the Servant. "You have my word."

Giving him a look like a person looking with pity at a fellow struggling through a problem she found easy, Rin shook her head and left. Shirou caught the tall Archer staring at him before the door shut.

* * *

Shirou breathed out a long, lingering sigh. He was surprised, and relieved, that Rin had acquiesced so quickly. However, his little lie had brought about its own problems. He hadn't known about the fact that there were things like Stray Servants existing. He'd wanted to pass it off as a lingering Servant that would fade on its own time.

"I see. Master intends to dispose of me, is that right?" he heard the whisper and stirred. The Servant who'd said this looked glumly at her fingers clasped over the covers.

He glanced at Saber, who was so helpfully staring out into the fog beyond the closed window as if the enemy were right about to materialize there (and that was probably true). "What gives you that idea?" he asked. "If you were a 'stray servant', my answer would still be the same. And you aren't, right?" He touched his Command Seal-filled arm subconsciously. "Would you be able to tell me if you're really my Servant now?"

Still averting her eyes, she nodded. "The Contract, I can feel it connect to you as I was to him. But I should first tell you, sir, that there is merit to that young lady's assertion that I be dealt with. Quickly. Because even as a Servant to you, I would still be quite useless. I am of the Assassin class, and weak at that. When that enemy," she pointed to the window, "Came in, I sensed its arrival, and yet I could do nothing. I'm a Servant only good for nothing but pleasing men with my wretched body. Unless," she uttered a sob-ridden laugh. "That is what you're looking for."

"Of course not," he said firmly. He hesitated, then grinned. "Well, I'm referring to the first part, of course-in that I certainly won't throw you out. As to the latter part, well I certainly won't take advantage, but I won't say no, either!" He chortled, then faltered when he realized with horror that he'd just said something quite appalling. Well if that didn't make him sound like a creepy old fart! "Ahhh... ahem. Just ignore what I just said. The last part, I mean. You're certainly a delightful-looking lady, but that's not why I won't throw you out, I can assure you! Not at all!"

She giggled faintly. "My, I've certainly never been called lady by my old Master before... But then, if you're not getting rid of me, what of your promise to the lady from before?"

"I'll figure something out. Don't worry, it'll all work out." He glanced at his arm. With the Servant's acknowledgement, he was able to confirm his anomalous nature-that he now had two Servants in addition to the many Command Seals he possessed. He blinked, suddenly realizing that this was a rare coup: here was a Servant who was reasonably experienced about the outside world, whom he could ask his other questions.

"If you are not too tired, Assassin... wait, how would you like me to call you?" He knew Servants had True Names, which they would only reveal under certain circumstances-and he would certainly not want to impose on the Servant if she did not want to.

"I... Master can call me however he likes, I do not mind."

"Assassin then? Would that be alright with you?"

"Yes, I-" She paused, as if a thought had just occurred to her. She bit her lip. "Well, Master, if you'd let me, I'd like to be... Louise. If you please."

"Louise," he repeated. "Certainly. Louise. It is a... pretty name," he said, a little lamely, unable to find a good term for it. Well, he wasn't a poet.

Louise dipped her head and smiled. "Thank you... Master."

"You can call me Shirou. That's my name. Saber over there knows it."

"Shirou... But no," Louise shook her head. "I would like to do that, Master, but it appears that magus knows you as Bob. And unless you do not fear a sudden and unfortunate leak to people who might do you harm, I'd rather call you Master for now, Mr. Shirou."

"Oh, that's a good point." A thud came from behind, and he turned to see Saber look at Louise silently with something akin to admiration. _But of what?_

"I understand," he said, with a slight pout. "Master it is, for now. Well then, Louise, I hope you don't mind my asking questions. About this City... and other things..." He'd refrain from asking about her former Master-she'd probably find it difficult, but if she needed an ear ready to listen, then he would certainly shoulder that role.

"I shall answer to the best of my ability, Master."

"I'll begin by telling you what I know of the City." He then related to Louise a shorter version of what he understood of Rin's little lecture. When he was done, he concluded with "...And that's all, I think. Well, does any of it sound familiar to your experience, Louise?"

She considered that for a few seconds before nodding. "It is gratifying to see that my little expertise might be useful to you, my Master. There are a few details that are actually new to me, but so far, what Miss Tohsaka has told you of this place is true. It is actually surprising that the young lady is the True Master of Archer. My... former Master and his associates would never have dared this plan if they knew. But it is obvious they would have scrambled to sell the information to the highest bidder. In the City where they have everything, information is one of the few things that still hold value to the magi."

He had told the Servant Rin's secret without any real deliberation on the pros and cons on his part: if she was to be his Servant then he must establish a stable foundation of trust, or at least appear to. It might be a long time yet before Louise would start trusting a Master, given what she'd endured on her last one.

"Do magi get assaulted like tonight often? Was your former Master's group the exception?"

"Oh no, there are many hooligans in the city, Master. Gangs and groups converge in the bottom of the barrel, often failed or poor magi who have no option but to cling to each other in the murk."

Shirou made a mental note of that. "Have you ever been to the labyrinth?"

"A few times," she said. She smiled bitterly. "And only up to the entrance. My former Master would not have dared the cost of Revival to bring me with him. He would always be rather... passionate each time he failed to get something he wanted himself from the first levels. I do know that proper Master-Servant pairs can venture into the deeper levels, and I strongly suspect that is what keeps the richer magi afloat."

Shirou stewed in silence for a few seconds, unsure if he should broach the next question. But he steeled himself and asked: "Would you happen to know of Kiritsugu Emiya?" He heard a rustle of armor behind him, and he sensed Saber's eyes on them.

"Oh yes, the True Master of Saber. He was well known to my former Master and his mates. In fact, they've never stopped talking of an issue involving the man and the higher-ranked magi the past few days."

He stared, eyebrows slowly rising in shock. "Master?" Louise asked, with confusion.

"Sorry," he said, blinking. "I'm just... aren't the identities of True Masters supposed to be secret?"

"Oh yes, of course, but that Kiritsugu is supposed to be the remarkable exception." She tilted her head, frowning in thought. "My information on the events are vague, and based on secondhand sources, but apparently Kiritsugu revealed his rank as True Master the day after he took it over, and then announced that he had made his Wish, and that the Wish was for the city to be better organized and policed.

"Before the other Masters of Saber could strike, the Wish had seemingly gone into effect, as several powerful Servants were summoned, bound to the will of his Saber, acting for Kiritsugu in extension. It was an anomaly that broke the rules-but apparently it was part of his Wish, and though unusual, it was well within the Grail's ability. With the group of powerful Servants, and Kiritsugu's own skills in magecraft, attempts to steal the rank from him failed time and again.

"And then his Servant summoned a whole army of Knights, each on par with the average Servant. Opposition to his 'audacity', ceased, and, finding it hopeless, the new status quo was allowed, though Kiritsugu is considered everywhere as a dangerous existence. His Saber's army now acts as a self-appointed police force, patrolling the streets, assisting in the destruction of Stray Servants, and other duties. I think that's all I know of the man, Master."

"Thank you, Louise," he said hoarsely, his gaze far and wistful. Though he had a bunch of other questions in his mind, it had been irrevocably shaken by the revelation that Kiritsugu was alive and existed here. It was the sort of surreal feeling that he thought he'd never experience, and he'd led a colorful, more storied life than most.

Resurrection of the dead was a heretical thought for any being, magus or not, and yet here it was, and Shirou lived it.

"Master? Did I say something wrong?"

Louise' face was full of concern and fear.

He swallowed painfully. "No. No you didn't, Louise. I'll... I'll let you rest. That's all the questions I had. For now."

"I do not really need to rest, Master. And if something's troubling you-"

He smiled warmly. "Thanks, Louise. Nothing's wrong, but the events of the past day... Well, a lot of things have happened, and I think I'll need time to process it. I'll just be here, on the floor. No, no, please use the bed. I'll just sit over here. I shan't be forsaking you, have no fear."

* * *

He knew both Servants were staring at him, even as he acted like he were trying to rest. Had anyone tried to ask further, he'd tell them he was just meditating.

Which he _was_ doing, in all honesty.

What was he even doing here? Summoned a Saber, acquired a thousand Command Seals, and met a Rin who wasn't Rin: all to do what, exactly? The doubts swirled in his mind, breeding infinite sorrows in his fertile imagination. If he'd been kidnapped by a third party, then surely they would be better served by telling him what they wanted for him than subject him further to this simulacrum, if it was one.

Or they could have picked some other person. And if they had to have an Emiya Shirou, then pick some other poor schmuck. Not old, tired him.

It took a while for a firm part of himself to remind the rest of his mind that he had made peace with Emiya Kiritsugu, and the legacy he had left for Shirou, a long time ago. He'd made his choice, and he had no regrets for the bloodstained path he'd walked on through much of his life, chasing the ideal like a fool.

There was no point to resurrecting the man, or to call up his image for him, because that man and the man in his memories were entirely different people. And like the distinction he'd made with this Rin and his Rin, between his Saber and that Saber, there was no point in being unsettled by what he saw.

He would act to discover his purpose here; and then he would act swiftly on that purpose.

By the time he'd realized that, he found that he'd fallen asleep, for perhaps a few hours. He felt the warmth of the covers that had been laid on his sitting body, which could have been done by any of them. The lights had been turned off, and the only illumination left was the faint moonlight seen through the windows.

The moonlight illuminated the black Saber, who knelt in front of the window, her eyes closed. She was the very picture of a knight maintaining a night-long vigil, to prepare for an endeavor on the morn. Her firm seating posture, the hushed aura she projected under the feeble light, and her fairy-like features contrasting against the oppressive darkness all added to a familiar scene in his memories under an entirely different light: that of his own Artoria, under the morning sun, many years ago.

The stillness broke as Saber, seemingly feeling his gaze, turned her glittering eyes on him, and affixed him with a gaze that mesmerized him with its intensity. The similarity in that gaze and demeanor, and the ethereal-like atmosphere of the situation, reminded him so much of Artoria that he instantly blurted out something he had been quite reluctant to say.

"Would you like me to get some food for you?"

The next instant he'd cursed himself for the asinine suggestion. But then she surprised him, when her eyes widened, and she nodded, though a little too quickly.

* * *

It was a long shot, but he was happy to be proven wrong. The pantry was exactly where Rin had told him. She wasn't as stocked with supplies as he'd wanted, but there definitely appeared to be signs that the kitchen wasn't just a set-piece. Despite that unearthly Wish, Rin seemed to still like eating, and cooking. By the looks of the leftovers inside the fridge (and wasn't that in itself a shock) she was doing enough of the latter, too.

"Not a lot to work with, which is a shame," Shirou remarked to Saber. Louise had been left to her sleep in the room. "There's only pork, bits of fish, some fruit and not a lot of leafy veggies. It'll have to be a stew, with a salad on the side, would you like that?"

Saber bobbed her head as if she were trying to knock something off the top. Shirou beamed, cracked his knuckles and, with a silent prayer to Rin for making use of her kitchen, started cooking.

"Master?" Halfway through cooking, Louise' voice came through the doorway.

"Ah, Louise, have a seat. I'm cooking something up for you all, so just be patient for a bit."

"I thought... you'd left... all alone..." she said faintly. She blinked her watery eyes and looked at her fellow Servant, who sat patiently at the dining table. "...Does Saber like to eat?"

He snorted. "Boy does she ever-" A rolled-up wad of paper hit the back of his head. He turned around. "Saber, no tomfoolery in the kitchen. It's bad manners, and it invites the displeasure of the cooking spirits! You wouldn't want them to spoil your meal."

"He's right, Saber," said Louise, giggling. She wagged her brows. "Though, there might be exceptions when your cook's also your lover..."

"Ah, I wouldn't soil the kitchen even for a lover, Louise," he said airily with a grin. "I am aware of the tension one develops in the kitchen, but this is one man who shan't have it, sorry to say." He shrugged. "If she were really... antsy, then obviously the cooking will have to be postponed, and the rendezvous outside."

"I see. That does have a certain nobility to it, Master. You've risen a bit more in my estimation."

He took a small spoon, dipped it in the sauce, and held it out for Louise to taste. "How about that?"

Her eyes lit up when she tasted it. "Oh my... You're certainly skilled, Master." She smacked her lips. "You've risen a _lot_ more by my reckoning. Any woman would be glad for a man like you. My mother always said a good husband needed to be a good wife to be a good partner, and she advised three things to watch out for: the sinew, the cock, and the cooking. You're good for two, Master, though I wonder if you've time for a taste of the third?"

He grunted. "I'm afraid I'm a bit of a nutcase, Louise. Can't mix pleasure with business so well. But I will think about it after I'm done here, if you're the type of patient girl I like."

"Oooh, I can certainly be patient for you, Master."

Saber glowered at them both, though the emotion of cold anger seemed muted by the congenial atmosphere that had developed over the kitchen, thick as the fumes from the pot. He shook his head at Louise' provocation, seeing that though her body and her words said otherwise, her eyes showed the truth. She was still so torn, so fragile, and even taking her up on the offer on a lark would taint their relationship from then on.

Also, Saber was still glaring.

"I take back what I said. You must marry me, Master!" she exclaimed, a bit later, once they'd all sat down for a little dawn breakfast. Or at least it seemed like dawn, according to the clock on the wall. Louise had said it after a small sip of his new stew.

"Baby steps, m'dear," he said. "You haven't tried the salad yet." She made moaning sounds, almost like she were in sexual ecstasy, once she tasted that too. He shook her head at her expressiveness. He looked around the table, and could hardly believe that the magus in Rin's legend had Wished to take moments like this away. To find the time to eat delicious, nutritious meals with other people, to share one's cooking with them-was, in his opinion a pleasure not easily replaced. Ways should have been found to mitigate hunger, for example, to Wish for a limitless cornucopia instead, that the fundamental of hunger itself was not taken away.

In fact, one need only look at how Saber devoured her food, wolfing down stew and meat and salad with voracious speed, like she were a street waif only just experiencing a hot meal for the first time. It was a real pleasure to watch her enjoy the meal he'd prepared.

"How is it, Saber?" As befit her manner for the whole evening, she said nothing.

"You seem quite familiar with her, Master. Have you known each other long?" Louise asked.

"Her? No. But what do you mean that I'm familiar?"

"Oh, that you seem to not find it odd she's acting like this. It's not everyday you discover a Servant acting like she is now."

"Ah... well, I did know people. From before. They were quite similar, if not in appearance, then in manner." He neglected to say that "before" was in an entirely different place, where people who were alive were long dead. "Like that Rin."

"Oh, is that why you trust her so much?"

He raised a brow. "...Why do you say that?"

"Well, begging your pardon, Master, but the brief exchange I've seen you make with her... Not just how you spoke, but the words you used... I'm sorry, I just read too much into things sometimes, it's just a perk of being, well, me..."

"Go on."

"Well, to my eyes it seems like you trust her very much. And though I could see the girl not completely trusting you in return, you don't seem to mind that."

"And that tells you what, could I ask?" he said, stroking his beard. He scoffed. "That I'm a buffoon?"

She waved her hands. "Oh no no, not that, Master. That you would trust this girl even if she claimed she could, I don't know, part the ocean with her magic. Or wring blood from a piece of stone."

"Hmm..." That was certainly food for thought. "Perhaps that's true, Louise." The disadvantage of working with a familiar face, which was worse here because it seemed like the exact same person; only that Rin was like something from a science fiction story where someone slips through the cracks in the universe and ends up in a place eerily similar, but subtly different from his own.

"Of course, this is just all my impressions, Master. There's no need to take anything I say seriously," she concluded with a faint chuckle.

He stared at Louise' attempt at self-deprecation before he shook his head. "Oh no, that was really helpful, and important to know, Louise. From now on, I'll be glad to hear your opinion on things. Especially with regards to this city, and my situation."

"Y-you're very kind, Master."

"No, I mean it. I am a buffoon, I admit that openly, and I would like it if people would point out things to stupid old me. Even Saber's quite open about it." He glanced at the black Saber, who only stared blankly while absently chewing her meal like a cow. "Well, that was before she chose to be silent," he said to Louise in a mock whisper. "Doesn't trust Rin, unlike me."

"Ahahaha..." Louise looked unsure if she should side with him, or with the sour-faced Saber.

"That does remind me, would you happen to have ways to hide yourself, Louise? You are an Assassin are you not?" He only had the experience of that Japanese swordsman in his own war, but he figured that Assassins must have some tools to be good Assassins, like Saber with her skills at the sword.

Her face fell. "Ahh... I am an inferior specimen of Assassin, Master. The more powerful ones, the _proper_ ones have an element of Presence Concealment."

"What's that?"

"It allows them to completely hide from the presence of others, even other Assassins."

That would have been very useful, if only to hide her from Rin. "And you don't have it?"

She shook her head. "They can completely hide themselves from all sight. I, on the other hand, have only been given a dubious ability called Espionage. I never even had a chance to use it with my Master; he thought deception moot when everyone would already know I was his Servant. I may only pass myself off as something else to confound others, and not completely erase my existence from the world. It's probably because I wasn't really trained to be an assassin, when the 'me' from before was alive."

"That'll be troublesome. How does it work, concretely?"

"So long as you do not reveal the secret-the truth of who I am-most people will only see me as someone or something else. But to them, I will 'exist' in a sense, just in a different form."

"So I could tell Rin that, you're... what, my wife, or sister, or something, and she won't ask questions?"

She looked down, troubled. "Ah, that might have worked, before. Before you told the magus my story, and she therefore concluded I was a stray servant. Unless that memory could be excised, her impression of 'me as stray servant' will run counter to whatever form I take using Espionage."

Damn. He could theoretically hypnotize Rin, but he had no idea if she had decent defenses against it, or if her countermeasures wouldn't ream him in the ass if he tried it. And also, ultimately, trying it was akin to declaring war on Rin, which he wasn't keen on doing.

"How about if I tell her I acquired you as Servant? You know, fool her with the truth."

She smirked. "That would be nice, but again, it would contradict the knowledge in her head. I believe the Masters here may only have one Servant. In her mind, that knowledge would clash with your assertion, and she would instantly know something was wrong, that I was trying to influence her."

"And that would be bad," Shirou said, with a sigh. He glanced at Saber, then snapped his finger. "How about this?"

* * *

"She's become your Saber's _what_?"

"You look well, Rin." She looked very fine and well indeed. Her hair, which had been done up last night, now flowed long and untied behind her like a brunette waterfall. It was the Rin who had gone on to the Clock Tower in London, who had kept on sending him and Illya postcards and letters containing pictures of her and her long, flowing hair. She'd cut it back a few years later, and her shorter hairstyle was the norm for much of the time he knew his Rin. It was a nostalgic trip to see her younger, and with hair like this. "And, yes, it is true. My Saber has that capability," he continued, waving to a silent Saber, who looked longingly at the new batch of stew he was cooking. "It... is a special aspect of her Noble Phantasm."

Rin looked like she wasn't buying any of the bullshit, so he hoped Louise's special skill would convince her more. Rin glared at the aforementioned Servant, as if commanding her to reveal her secret. If Louise' ability worked, however, Rin's mind would find nothing wrong with the statement, as there was nothing in the rules preventing Servants from taking over Servants as Masters.

At least, he hoped.

His silent wish was answered when Rin shook her head, but without any hostility. "Well, it's not my business what you or your Servant decides. Just be conscious of the mana requirements-it'll probably be steep."

"Er... yes." He glanced at Louise, who'd sagged with relief. He looked over at Rin's own Servant, who like him towered over the rest of the room. In effect the two of them side by side looked like twin titans. At least the Servant didn't tower over him, as before. If it was even the same Servant.

"I never expected you to actually cook something," Rin observed, yawning. She went over to the counter, and took a sip. It was a blatant violation of Shirou's internal rules of the kitchen, but of course she had the right of it, technically, being the owner of the kitchen and ingredients.

Rin cocked her head, frowned, and pointed to the pot.

"What the heck? Did you just heat up Archer's stuff or something?"

He raised his brows. "Certainly not. Why would you say that?"

"It's weird, but this tastes exactly like something he made last week. Same degree of taste, spice, texture, consistency, same everything." She took repeated sips, and raised a brow at him. "It's eerie."

Confused, he eyed the masked Servant, who did a thumbs-up gesture at him.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: And another.  
**

 **I appreciate all the suggestions everyone. Keep them coming, as nothing has been set in stone yet.**

 **Hope you enjoyed, and look out for more!**


	9. The City

(((Chapter 8))) **  
**

After eating his prepared meal, Rin quickly hurried him over to another room, which looked to be some sort of strategy room of hers. A large table dominated it, on top of which were piles of tomes, various magical-looking apparati, and a large map of what looked to be the city. An grandfather clock stood against the wall. Pieces of paper were stuck to the walls, hundreds of them, of varying sizes. He had seen rooms like this before, where people struggled through the quagmire of conspiracy by posting facts on the walls and connecting them in a thick web.

There were pictures or photographs of people he didn't know about-but he did catch sight of several that were familiar.

There was Fuji-nee, under "Overseer". Lines of string connected her face to others he didn't recognize.

Then there was Emiya Kiritsugu, in the flesh. His appearance was not the gaunt, sickly one in his memory. The man's portrait looked grim and stoic, but he seemed less like he were on death's door. It was rather that it promised death, from the way the eyes looked out from the portrait.

And then there was one other, one which caught his eye so quickly it was as if she had jumped out from amid the sea of faces. Everything else blurred; it was the only face he saw. His breath hitched up, stuck in his throat.

Illya. Young Illya. Young and pretty as she had been on the day he met her, and on the day he'd lost her. Fairy-like countenance, wide-eyed and innocent-looking, Shirou could hardly have ever hoped to see her again. The girl's face was like a hammer that shook his gut, and cracked open a floodgate of emotion he hadn't known still existed on his rust-encrusted frame.

"Bob? Does someone interest you?"

He shook his head once, and willed the tears to be gone. He cleared his throat, and turned his attention to the table.

"It's nothing. I was... only marveling at those. You keep a close eye on everyone in the City?" He turned, for example, to someone named "Darnic" next to him, where Rin had scribbled "Possible True Master of Berserker?" underneath it.

Rin spread her arms wide. "This is the culmination of a lifetime of dust and toil. My dossier of every known magus of note. I am sure every magus who sees themselves as a player in the game has similar methods, though admittedly in far more elegant means. In this room, I am surrounded by the faces of my enemies, Bob. I keep them here, in their multitude, to remind me to always be vigilant, no matter the circumstance."

"It seems like, well no offense, but it seems like a rather lonely life."

She huffed. "'Tis all very well for you to say that, Bob, when you haven't had to use every ounce of wit and skill to stay alive in this City."

"I have not had a glamorous life, Rin, but it was still quite hair-raising."

Rin raised her head at the look in his eye, then held her hands out in apology. "I am sorry if I said something wrong."

"It's fine. We've both said things we didn't mean," he said with a sigh. "Well, what is it you wanted to show me here?"

"I brought you here to demonstrate the magnitude of the City. Thousands upon thousands of magi, all living here, plotting their own lives, while working for the demise of others, for this or that reason. I could no more trust him," she said, flicking a picture near her, then she flicked another on her other side, "Than I can trust her. Magus who profess to be one's stout ally are sure to be working for their own self-interest, never mind the obvious danger of their stabbing you in the back. It is a sad and lonely reality that fills us all with paranoia, but there it is.

"But now I find myself with a unique opportunity. This is a rare chance for me, Bob: to find myself with someone in need of an ally. Make note of what I said: ally. Not slave, nor master. A partner on equal standing. Among all these fickle, self-serving wretches, there is beauty, there is a sense of wonder to think that one may find solace in someone. For me, that someone, is obviously yourself.

"I take a huge risk, but I firmly abide with my decision. I have chosen to take you on your word, Bob, and I shall ask you no further about your circumstances. You say you are new to this place, to the customs, to the society-to everything-and so I'll believe you. I'll also respect your not wanting to discuss it further. Out there," she indicated the pictures again, "Is a cruel and dangerous place, and you would end up in several thousand pieces if the City lets it. Which it will. But if you will have me, then let bygones be gone, and let us join hands for _our_ mutual benefit. I shall guided you through the inner machinations of City life, and _that_ shall be my vow, as you did for me."

Rin ended the speech with her hands on the table, leaning over it in a challenging sort of way. Shirou could almost laugh at the near-transparent way she had made the offer, and was almost tempted to point it out. Granted, his Rin's many negotiations were effective, and as he recalled got him out of many close calls. But this was the first time he was on the receiving end, after so very long. It was endearing, like a puppy doing a trick.

Admittedly he could see her point well. Dragging him all the way here to point out all the other bad magi, who may or may not be as understanding of him and his thousand Command Seals, was an expected tactic to manipulate his perception, and ultimately his loyalty. And he wasn't that blind not to see that, surrounded by magi and wielding a power that they would find irresistible, it was prudent to stick with a known factor. Shirou could even catch a glimpse, somewhat, of her reasoning. Aside from the obvious motivation to study and keep his "miracle arm" all to herself, he was also a more than serviceable ally, with a selfless personality that he'd shown to her over the past day.

Well, he would play along, for now. A Rin Tohsaka on his side was never a bad idea, especially if one got into _her_ good side. She rewarded loyalty with her own, unflinching and steadfast, and Shirou would need allies other than his Servants, if he were to survive here.

He still ended up laughing, a guffaw that made Rin's face turn red.

"W-what's so funny? Hey! I'm being serious here!" she said, blustering.

"Ahem... Do forgive me, young miss-it is just that, to me it is almost like you're asking me to be your friend more than an ally."

"Wait! N-no, it's not like that!" she near shouted. "Don't get carried away with the wrong impression!"

"I'm just pulling your leg," Shirou said. Though he would have appreciated being called friend by this Rin. "And as to your offer: I completely agree, Rin. I wholeheartedly accept." He held out a hand, which she looked at with surprise. "I am looking forward to being in your care."

"Y-you-Same to you." Her eyes wide, she took his hand and shook it. She looked fairly embarrassed. "Well, I mean, it is good to see you make the right choice."

"Well then, what is to be our first course of action?" Shirou said, settling back and ready to hear this Rin's methods. She took a breath, pausing to compose herself, before she answered.

"Before everything else, I should like to inform you that, for the foreseeable future, it might be more prudent to continue the charade of Master and Servant for a bit longer. Do you see why?"

"That 'Lord Grand' or whatever his name was, I should imagine," Shirou replied, thinking back to that slimy blond.

Rin nodded grimly. "He is the True Servant of Ruler, a class designed to watch over the other Classes-to control them, if need be. To that end, though I am unsure as to the specifics, the Ruler may have the ability to spy on us through whatever means. I think Lord El-Melloi's demand back then was due to some quirk of his Servant's."

"It did not seem foolproof," Shirou observed. "I still managed to deceive the man."

"And we can count ourselves lucky on that." And then Rin grinned, as if a private joke had just occurred to her. "I wonder then... how about we make you a Servant for real, Bob?"

"Huh?"

* * *

Under the morning sun, the surroundings of Rin's mansion looked relatively tame and peaceful-idyllic, even. As Shirou breathed in the crisp morning air that slightly stung his nostrils, he cast his gaze about him.

The oppressive gloom of the fog had hidden quite a lot in the night. Shirou's assumption of Rin's estate being on a solitary part of town, as it had been in Fuyuki, had been quite disproven. Across the cobbled street outside the gate, and on either side of Rin's steel fence were other homes, each containing stately buildings and courtyards each seemingly competing with each other as to who could demonstrate the most elegance. It was posh, and snobby, and had the ridiculous, pervading and unmistakable smell of money, like some gated communities he had seen in his time, where only the rich thrived, excluded from the outside.

The change of atmosphere into a serene homeliness was demonstrated when he got out onto the street, where he saw other people for the first time-people who were not either those he already knew, or overtly hostile. It was comforting, in a sense, a dash of normalcy that gently guided him back onto firm and solid ground. Up and down the street he could spy people greeting each other good morning through their fences, or mill about on the sidewalk, sometimes approaching each other to talk, or to begin jogging along.

"Here we are... ah yes, right on time. Oii!" Rin waved, and Shirou saw a peculiar looking machine trundle through the street and stop in front of them. It looked like a miniature bus, shrunken and squashed into a boxy, rounded shape. It featured no wheels, but seemed to hover by some unseen propulsion over the ground. It made a persistent thrumming noise, like a vacuum cleaner.

"This is a public carriage, if you're not familiar with it," Rin said in an undertone. Then, in a louder voice, she said, "Good morning, is that you, Chrissy?"

A voice responded, seemingly from within the depths of the strange-looking machine. "It is, Lady Tohsaka, and good morning. Off to the city?"

"Yes, yes, a little special trip too," she glanced at Shirou pointedly. Then she blinked, eyes wide, then sighed, having spotted someone behind Shirou whom she seemed to recognize.

Shirou turned and saw a man in a well-tailored brown suit approach, and doff his hat. He had a round, pudgy face, pale, with splotches of red on his cheeks, like he'd been running. He carried a book under his arm. He bowed to Rin, then shook Shirou's hand.

"Lord Berman," Rin greeted, with a smile Shirou could tell was forced. "I hope the morning finds you well."

"Good morning to you as well, Lady Tohsaka. And to you, Servant Archer. Are either of you alright? I had heard the most dreadful things from my auguries last night, and there was an awful din which I swear could only be coming from your house. I am pleased to see nothing untoward has happened."

"You are very kind. I thank you for your concern, my lord. And indeed nothing important did happen."

"Again, that is very good," the man said with a chortle. Then his gaze turned to him. "And this is Archer, unmasked at last? What a change, what a change! He looks like a perfectly capable chap underneath that fearsome mask."

Shirou bowed his head slightly, and silently, prudent enough to not be drawn into conversation.

"Do you have any plans for today, my lord?" Rin asked.

"Oh, certainly not. I am still in a dither about my calculations on the Tristine Hexagram, but if you like you could dine with me for lunch? I would certainly appreciate your insights."

"That would be wonderful, but I've an appointment already," Rin said, beaming, and gestured towards the carriage. "Maybe another time, my lord."

"Ah, it is well. A very good day to you then, my Lady." Shirou watched the man turn and head towards the gate of the house just next to Rin's. It seemed he was literally a close neighbor.

"Horribly nosy man," Rin remarked in a whisper. "And one I generally wouldn't have entertained with more than a sentence. But I needed him to have a look at you, Bob. If there's one thing the man can be counted for, it is that he's so much of a gossip. It wouldn't surprise me if news of my new Servant's 'face' won't be already in every magus' dossier in under an hour. Which suits our plan just fine, eh? Come on then."

They piled into the carriage, with the interior actually looking as he thought it would, two luxurious velvet seats facing each other. Shirou sat on one side, Rin on the other, and he could assume that Saber and Louise were also there already, sitting at his side, invisible.

"To the Edelfelt estate, please," Rin called.

"Certainly, milady," came the voice. And then Shirou felt the carriage move. Looking outside the window, he saw the surroundings pass by as they picked up speed: he estimated it to be somewhere within 40 mph.

As they traveled, Shirou could sense their gradual descent down a slope, and could see the obvious inclinations of the houses they passed. It seemed this place was built all along a hill. The houses themselves did not seem uniform, and were all reasonably separated from each other with a generous space outside.

He saw many different designs and architectures, each he could vaguely attribute to different styles. There were austere Western-style mansions, rising tall and rigid, each harking to their own eras, some of which Shirou had seen on his travels through Europe. Then there were sprawling Eastern-style domiciles, reminiscent of the Emiya residence, with tiled, sloping roofs, tiered pagodas, some even with domes and terraces and spiraling minarets.

"There was a time when this whole hill could be rightly called the 'Tohsaka Estate'," Rin remarked absently, looking out the window. "Then, my grandfather was forced to sell parts of it, to settle debts. Slowly, bit by bit, the hill was sold to well-to-do magi, then gobbled up wholesale by those damned Harways. All we've got left is that mansion and the land around it."

"I see." It seemed that this Rin also had problems with finances. "Did you not Wish, then, to prosper?"

Rin thought about that for a second before she blew a raspberry. "Are you kidding me? I'm not going to be saddled with desires like that. My grandfather made his bed; I'm looking out for me. But in all seriousness, I would be a fool if I had wished for something as ephemeral as that. I've got bigger game in my life."

The number of magi walking the streets increased, as did the presences of other carriages speeding by theirs. It seemed they were heading into a busier part of the City. Eventually, they reached the bottom of the hill, and there Shirou could see they had stepped into an entirely different part of the city. Intersections now branched off from the main road, leading down into other streets and avenues. The buildings now were scrunched up against each other, no longer conforming to individual tastes and designs, but seemingly whipped together into a semblance of blocky shapes. It was a more familiar sight to Shirou, and it called to mind his travels through the cities of sleepy Europe.

Though he thought that, everything did seem to still have a feel of a residential area, and there were few storefronts he could see which proclaimed a business of some sort-then again maybe the magi didn't go for that sort of thing.

It was here that he saw his first Knight. They were not too hard to miss from the magi and occasional Servant walking the street; they easily towered to a good seven feet, their long, thick capes, and the polished armor gave them a stern, formidable air, combined with the menacing weapons they held ready in their hands. Up and down the street he saw them standing at attention, like suits of armor in a well-to-do manse, though they were as if animated by a poltergeist when they fidgeted and flexed.

It was easy to guess these were Emiya Kiritsugu's subordinates as detailed by Louise. Though in recalling the many number of magi he'd passed by, he wondered if his methods were truly effective, when considering the sheer disadvantage in numbers (and, to an extent, power).

Shirou now felt like he'd quite underestimated the scales arrayed against him. If Rin was telling the truth, then every non-Servant out there was a magus to some degree. It now seemed quite daunting to attempt to deceive a whole city of them, as Rin had planned.

* * *

 _"But how am I supposed to be your Servant when I'm, well, me?"  
_

 _"Well, let me rephrase. We go on with the mistaken assumption that you're my Servant, all while keeping my actual Servant in reserve. He's turned into one heck of a trump card."_

 _"Well now, but isn't that dangerous?" he'd asked, frowning at the thought of being named the bait. "You could be making that Lord Kayneth guy even more suspicious."_

 _"It'll be fine." She went over to tap her Servant on the shoulder. "The guy barely speaks. You and he share the same height, same build, same everything really-well, almost, anyway. At least you got the wide, buff shoulders right to a T-anything else, we can attribute to Archer's mask obscuring your face, and this body armor he's wearing."_

 _"But I haven't the strength for it. Not equal to a Servant's, anyway. What'll happen if someone attacks you?"_

 _"Well, admittedly, Archer won't ever be far away; and I'll always keep a Command Seal in reserve in case I need to call him over asap. But we'll keep the ruse going on as far as we're able. You can then use that time to do whatever you want in this City, without too much repercussion. You are supposed to be a Servant of a high-ranking magus, after all._

 _"First, I've a ring that will take you to a safe location once you've infused some mana inside. The safe location will obviously be the mansion."_

 _"I... thank you?" He didn't know what to think of the small unassuming ring, and the implication of freeform teleportation that it represented. Still he was grateful for her generosity.  
_

 _"Second, we'll need to deepen the ruse." Rin leaned forward with a smirk, something which always heralded the troublesome when it came to Rin Tohsaka._

* * *

Of course, he knew Saber would definitely have complained that he'd cooperated so willingly with Rin on this mad scheme of hers, but Shirou needed a way to explore his surroundings with the least danger. Leaning on Rin as a crutch was far from the most degrading things he had to do to achieve his goals.

At this point, Shirou, who could not completely trust Rin, was determined to gather a base foundation of resources for himself. It was always the priority to keep one's war effort supplied. Penniless, powerless, and almost completely friendless, he would have to rely on Rin's good graces (like room, and board, and food even still) for a time before he could stand on his own in this city. But of course, he had no thought of betraying the girl, not until he saw the truth of everything for himself.

The carriage had already begun to turn into side streets, left and right and deeper into the city. When crossing a certain intersection he caught a glimpse of tall, skyscraper-like buildings far off in the distance.

He wanted to ask Rin about that, but she was fiddling with a strange thick parchment.

"Driver?" Rin called, without looking up. "I've changed my mind, it looks like they'll be meeting at the Hotel la Grande. Take me there, instead."

"Will do, milady."

"My apologies Bob," Rin said, putting away the parchment. "It looks like I won't be able to introduce you to the other districts we'll be visiting. The Edelfelt estate is on the opposite side of the city, and we would have passed through quite a number of interesting districts."

"That's alright."

"If you're feeling lost, just wave down a carriage and ask them to take you back to the mansion; and you also have your ring, but I think I know you're smart enough not to use it willy-nilly."

Shirou chuckled politely.

"Driver?" Rin called out again. "Once I'm dropped off, could you send my Servant on his way to the Boulevards of Imagination? I have an errand I want him to run."

"Um... that is highly unusual, milady," the driver replied uncertainly. After a short pause, he continued, "But what the hey, it's early and you've always been a good customer."

"Thank you very much, Chrissy," Rin said sweetly. Turning to him, she said in a more serious tone, "Do you remember what you need to get?"

"I do," said Shirou, patting the front of his red coat, where there lay jewels that were to be used to barter. There was also a small strip of paper on which were placed a list of instructions.

More secretly, he also carried the enemy's severed (and possibly rotting) hand. If the one he was visiting was a necromancer as he knew their kind, then it would also be good payment.

* * *

 _"A necromancer?"_

 _"Don't be put off, he's a very reliable supplier," Rin said in a reassuring voice._

 _"I'm not put off," Shirou said. "But I thought such things were... I thought magi would be leery of them."_

 _"Most are," said Rin, agreeing. "But only so far as to the nature of their work. Magi would gleefully cut off limbs or flay someone alive for whatever reason; yet once they're dealing with the dead they all turn right squeamish."_

 _"Hum." He was aware, very much, having dealt with necromancers on his and on opposing sides before. At the start their skills were particularly heretical to Shirou and his younger beliefs, but after awhile he saw them as just any other magus. They could do good, or they could not and it only mattered as to how they applied their peculiar skills.  
_

 _That was when he recalled he had a hand he'd thought of disposing, and though it seemed a bit morbid, he instantly wondered how much it would sell. He hoped there were enough of the severed magic circuits within that would be of value to necromancers._

 _Rin handed him a piece of paper. "You'll be getting these things from him. And if he doesn't have it, then I assume he can tell us where to get it from the Labyrinth. Make sure to get all the information needed from the guy: write it down if necessary. I don't want to owe him more of my jewels taking a return trip."_

 _"Can they not be contacted remotely?"_

 _"This one's a bit ornery. I could go to someone else, but I don't want some other bullshit from slimy conmen. At least this guy... with this guy he'll be square with you-as long as you can pay."_

 _"Kairi... Shishigou, was it?"_

* * *

They arrived at a street featuring a set of high-class looking establishments. Cafes and restaurants, boutiques and other lofty shops waited in the shadow of the occasional lumbering Knight. They stopped in front of a tall building, from where a red carpet was laid out from the entrance.

"Ah, good. It seems he's here," Rin said.

"Archer?" He knew Rin had commanded the Servant to follow them on foot, though he was surprised it had gotten here so fast.

"Yes." Rin looked at him. "I wish you luck, Bob. I shall see you later." She went down the carriage, and after making final arrangements with the driver, went down the red carpet towards the entrance.

"We'll be heading off then, Mister Archer," the driver said, a little gruffly. "Don't you worry."

"I appreciate it, sir," Shirou replied. A moment later, as the carriage began to move again, both Saber and Louise materialized on the seats in front of him-the former fully armored, the other dressed as if she were going inside that swanky hotel with Rin.

"I didn't have the chance to talk with the both of you," Shirou said, "But I'd like to hear it, what do you guys think?"

"The magus seems to be a reliable ally, Master," Louise said.

Saber snorted. "How naive can you be?" she said.

"Saber?" Shirou raised a brow. "You're talking again?" And here he thought she'd go ballistic that he'd practically allied with the person she had been leery of from the very beginning. Silently, at least.

"I did say I would talk again when you've seen sense. And you have, Shirou." A pensive frown creased her beautiful face.

"Well, that's a relief," Shirou muttered.

"I mean it," Saber said with a sigh. "And here I thought you'd actually put much thought in your decision; now it seems more unlikely. Follow along, if you will-you do realize that putting forth your strange abilities to Rin was a very foolish move, right?"

"Perhaps."

"Then it is offset by Rin's revelation of being the True Master of Archer. It is such an important secret to her, Master, and you hold it right in your hands. No one else knows of it."

"Ahhh, that's right," Louise said, snapping her fingers. "You each hold secrets of the other, Master. Secrets that would utterly ruin you if they were revealed-if either one betrays the other. You could easily sell knowledge that she is the True Master, conversely, she could easily sell you and your body if she puts her mind to it. The pact you entered is mutually beneficial in that regard, while it also ensures that either party keeps the other close, to prevent that eventuality."

"Though I am sure a magus like that will have already thought of several contingencies already," Saber said sourly. "Unlike our Master."

"Oh, Saber, that's a harsh thing to say to Master! Were you raised by wolves?"

For a moment, all sounds within the carriage ceased, as Saber swung her impressive dagger-like gaze towards Louise.

"Enough, please," he said. Though he'd been amused to see Saber all riled up by Louise, now was not yet the time for internal discord. That usually came later, times he'd dreaded for every time he had to manage a group's various personalities. "Look, Saber, Louise, we are in this together now. Please put aside your differences," he glanced up at the roof of the carriage, then said in a lower tone, "Until we're behind closed doors at least. This is a public area, and we can't exactly speak freely yet."

Saber looked to be gritting her teeth. "Agreed."

Louise shuttered her eyes. "Y-yes."

Seeing this made him want to scratch his head. _Keep it together man,_ he told himself. _You're almost 50, by god!_ "Let's talk about what we're going to do when we get there."

As the carriage moved, they quickly discussed their plan for that day. It was decided that Louise would keep a distance and keep vigilant using the enhanced senses granted her by the Assassin class, while Saber would be just a bit closer to him, to intercept if needed. Saber fully expected an enemy attack from any direction, and strangely enough, Louise agreed.

"This is not a friendly place, despite all that you've seen," Louise said sadly.

And indeed it seemed not to be, as the pleasant, bustling environs he could see outside soon gave way to darker, more subdued areas, near slum-like in appearance. As he understood it, using the far off skyscrapers as his guide, they'd moved east from Rin's mansion, then north to her destination before heading east even more. Businesses became less and less chic and high-class, and became things he was more familiar to seeing back in Japan. It was very telling that he saw more and more Knights here, sometimes posted on every corner of every intersection they passed.

Eventually they reached places that were remarkably even more rundown and dirty, with sooty roofs, grime-encrusted walls, and garbage piling up all along the sidewalks. The structures became less blocky, now looking more rundown and stilted, some even looking abandoned. It was such an abrupt change that Shirou could almost not believe they'd been to "Tohsaka's Hill" or the Hotel la Grande. They then passed through into a tunnel, and then when they came through to the other side it seemed to be the last he'd see of the sky.

Heavy smoke now lay atop the buildings, shrouding everything in an unpleasant and crude color. As if the city had merely hiccuped, the buildings returned to normalcy (though the dirty kind), and seemed more like pieces of unevenly shaped blocks welded haphazardly together than forlorn wrecks. The people now walking here were also different: or rather, the magi were overshadowed by strange-looking things: humanoid beings, tall and short, each looking like a mass of bronze and chrome, like that automaton he'd fought; there were smaller, more slender shapes like animated dolls, then huge, lumbering creatures like golems shaped from unearthly flesh; and then there were fantastical creatures that did not fit into any zoological category in Shirou's head, walking on legs, crawling on their bellies or flying on wings. And those were just the things that Shirou's mind could even describe.

"Hum. It all looks rather dull," Saber drawled.

"It is," Louise agreed. "These, Master, are the Boulevards of Imagination."

* * *

 _"I will not tell you to be overly cautious," Rin said, as they went through the mansion's front doors. "But do watch yourself in the Boulevards. It's a notorious place, where countless magi have let their creativity run away from them, away from logic, and common sense. And sometimes... well let's just say they let their passions run amok, and then there's an accident. And somehow, there's a whole bunch of accidents happening, too much that one wonders if they even are accidents."_

 _"And your contact lives there?"_

 _"Oh, it's his business. I hear he makes a killing."_

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: And another, whew.  
**

 **First off, to answer some questions raised.**

 **Though it seems contrary to the narrative (and I have given numerous hints in the story so far) I will say that Shirou here is a production of the "Fate" route in the visual novel. Yes, I know, it could have been better to keep things as they were and not have to spell it out. But it's been brought up a lot to me, and I think that people have a burning need to be exact about his origins, or they won't enjoy the story or something. So there's that for the curious.**

 **Next, we have Louise, who I assure you is not an OC, she is an actual Servant, whose identity should be quite clear if you're a Fate fan.**

 **Saber Alter is here, undistilled and summoned straight from the end of the "Heaven's Feel" route in the visual novel, as the interlude implied.**

 **No, Shirou will not gain very OP powers, even from his magic arm, so sorry for people expecting that. His strength against the factions of magi surrounding him will stem from a very different source entirely, and it is also quite obvious by this point what that is.**

 **Oh, and before I forget, the two people here (the cab driver and the neighbor) are not important to the plot, so there's no need to keep note of them.**

 **Anyway, let me know what you think, and I hope you enjoyed reading!**


	10. Labyrinth

(((Chapter 9))) **  
**

"Take these, Master," Louise said, handing what looked like a piece of lady's handkerchief. It smelled faintly of something sweet and floral.

He gave her a bemused look. "What for? Is there something on my face?"

"Just bring it with you," the Servant said, winking, before ghosting out. Confused, Shirou slid the gift inside his pocket before stepping out of the carriage.

The first thing he quickly noticed was the thick black smoke obscuring the sky above. It was such an oppressive and dangerous-looking atmosphere, and quite so omnipresent that he wondered why he hadn't seen it spread all over the City. Far more than fog, a blanket of smog should have covered the whole place, from dawn to dusk, dusk to dawn.

He turned and thanked the invisible driver, when then he noticed the next thing.

It was a smell his mind could not recognize, and yet his nose recoiled from it instinctively. It shot up his nose and choked him, making his eyes water, causing him to cough and cough like his lungs were about to vomit themselves out; until he thought about the handkerchief and placed it against his face.

"Are you okay, Master?" Louise asked him, through the invisibility.

"N-n-aackk!" The smell was like crude oil, mixed with sulfur and dunked in raw sewage, before being treated with decomposing flesh. It took a few moments of him just breathing in Louise's gift, of finding serenity in the simple floral scent before he was able to answer.

"...I'm alright, but my god that was horrible." Slowly, cautiously, he took off the handkerchief from his nose, his sense of smell having attuned to the sudden stench by degrees. It wasn't as bad now, but of course it was still pretty foul. "Do it just like we planned," he muttered, looking up and down the street through watery eyes as their carriage pulled away. His coughing had attracted a few curious eyes, but aside from that the busy street seemed to ignore his presence.

As he'd noted, among the pedestrians there were plenty of fantastic shapes here, so much that it would seem like he was a gawking tourist if he stared at them all. It was a surreal, alien landscape, far more than any foreign city he'd been in. He wondered if they were even still humans at all, or if they were existences like Servants.

In any case, he had no business with them as yet. He threaded through the sidewalk and entered the crowd, having recognized the landmarks he needed to go to in order to locate his ultimate destination.

It took a few twists and turns, but he found his destination. There it was, the words "Shishigou Life Insurance and financial relief (we also sell junk)" in bold lettering on a grimy, faded board. At first glance, it seemed like the sort of disreputable establishment one's eyes slide over through sheer instinct. The window display was boarded up by shoddy, splintering wood, and the door looked greasy-looking and forbidding, with far too many pieces of paper and graffiti stuck on it than was appropriate.

Then again, Shirou was never one for first appearances. He strode on up to the store, and when he found no bell, rapped loudly on the door.

He hadn't realized he'd been banging on it pretty hard when the door suddenly opened, accompanied by the sound of someone inside shouting, "Okay, okay, I said to wait, didn't I, you doo-ow my head!"

His hand had slapped with something hard, and yet soft. When his eyes had adjusted to the situation, he only had a view of his hand on someone's forehead before he felt incoming danger and somersaulted backward.

He recovered quickly, his eyes on the threat, when he faltered. For a moment, he thought he was looking at Saber standing there on the threshold.

"Saber?" he blurted out. That was when he realized there were subtle differences: like the shape of her face, the eyes, and her hair. Then he further saw that the person looked pissed, its arm outstretched like it was punching somebody.

"Aye, what of it?" the person asked with a challenging voice, a voice supremely different from even the black Saber, and so the difference with his Saber was solidified. It wasn't his Saber, but it looked similar enough that his senses had been thrown off. "Got a problem? Making a challenge?"

For a moment, he held his breath, having entirely forgotten he was a Master, as if he were a normal human facing down a monster. And indeed this person felt like one, oozing a palpable threat that he could not readily ignore, even if it weren't wearing any armor, only clad in an oversized, yellowing white shirt. As if he had forgotten there was his Saber on standby, Shirou's body geared for battle, ready to fight to the teeth.

"Saber!" someone shouted from behind the person. "Don't just stand there, either let the customer in or shut the door before the godawful smell gets in!" The sudden shout seemed to break the spell. Shirou rose, as the Saber lookalike turned around to address the person behind.

"I dunno about this guy. I think he's a challenger, Master."

A loud guffaw. "What? And they just up and knock? Is it Emiya or something?"

The Servant looked over its shoulder at him, its eyes traveling up and down his body. "No, but he sure smells like his Servant. I've got a bad feeling." After he just stood there for a few moments, it beckoned. "Well, you heard Master, come on in, if you've got business, mister. Otherwise, fuck right off."

"Ahh... right. This... is Kairi Shishigou's shop, right?"

Another face appeared from behind the door, grizzled, scarred and tanned. It beamed. "Yes it is, come on in, dear customer, come in," he ushered Shirou inside, before slamming the door behind him. "Do forgive my Servant's manners, we're a bit low on resources at the moment, and tempers are easily frayed."

Shirou's eyes adjusted to the indoor sight, and he saw quite the jumbled mess. What was ostensibly a waiting room was littered with all sorts of short shelves, upon which were numerous strange objects. Each of these had a price tag attached, along with the word "Negotiable, just ask" on it. A big whiteboard on the right announced some sort of "special" on something called catalysts, asking the reader to stake their luck. A big table dominated the room towards the end, where many more esoterica lay on it, and on the shelves behind it.

Confirming the presence of Saber behind him, he greeted the man who'd let him in, "Yes, well, good morning. You are... Kairi Shishigou?"

The man chuckled as he settled in on the seat behind his table. "That I am, friend. Neighborhood friendly necromancer, at your service. And you're... I know you, don't I?" Shirou's heart stopped, his eyes quickly going to the Servant, who'd settled on some sort of lawn chair at the back of the room. "You're that Rin Tohsaka's Servant, aren't you? Her Archer?"

Shirou blinked. Oh right. "Yes... Yes, I suppose I am."

The man snapped his fingers. "I knew you looked familiar! Just a bit different, of course, but you've got the red scheme going on, and I recall you've got the same shape in the body..."

Shirou nodded, allowing the man to come to his own conclusions. That had been Rin's plan regarding his identity-should a magus really ask, then Shirou would answer that he was the new Servant. But if they didn't, then let them assume he was the old Servant. Rin wanted it to drive a "big fat wedge into that greasy-haired shit's eyes", whatever that meant, and Shirou played along, though he wasn't confident in his acting.

"I never got the opportunity to ask her this, but did her operation work?" Kairi asked.

"Operation?"

"Oh, well, of course I ain't expecting you to recall-but still, you look pretty good for someone who's supposed to have Madness Enhancement."

"Madness Enhancement?" was what Shirou was about to ask before Kairi's Servant beat him to it.

Kairi turned and addressed Saber. "Oh yeah, this was before I got the dough to summon you, Saber. A young Rin Tohsaka came in here a ways back, wanted to know where she could find the parts for a ritual she needed. She was a lot nicer back then, methinks, as she told me she needed it for a project: to place Madness Enhancement on her Servant."

"What's that then?"

Kairi looked from the Servant to him, then shrugged. "It's a skill, and one mostly seen on Berserkers. Like, how would you feel if some magus comes and says she's going to give out like, Magic Resistance, or the Riding Skill, to, like a Caster?"

The Servant crossed its arms. "I don't know, are you telling me to fight this Caster or something? Bah, whichever case it might be, I'm still gonna slaughter the poor babe."

The man smiled. "I always liked your moxie, Saber. Well, to you it mightn't matter, well, what if I told you I'd be sticking you with Madness Enhancement, and then you'd be all crazy and unable to think most days, requiring me to put a very expensive Command Seal just to put your rabid ass down? What do you think then?"

"I'd think I'd'woulda killed you before you let me sink to the level of a mindless Berserker," said Saber. "While also pointing out: you wouldn'a been stupid enough to even try'n bankrupt yourself like that." The Servant met his eyes, scrutinizing him as if it and Shirou had just met. "Oh, I see now. Poor thing, did that Master of yours really do that thing on ya? You don't seem crazy. Well, something like Madness whatever's not enough to put the screws on Mor-"

"Ah, enough, enough, don't antagonize the customer, Saber." The man looked at him shrewdly. "Particularly since I can smell death on him. Whatcha got there on you, Archer? A pint of dried blood? Someone's nose, boogers attached?"

Shirou gave him the slip of paper first. "I am on an errand for Master. She wanted some things..."

"Well let's see now... This and that-" he laughed and shook his head. "I don't have anything on this list. They're not exactly ones you can easily store. Even as a necromancer, I feel bad for admitting that. But there's a limit to my skills, and-well, it's just my advice as a professional: keeping them around for longer periods makes them lose their potency as ritual materials."

"Master wanted to know, then, where one might acquire the materials."

"Oh, she wants to get it herself? Now I'm sad." He rolled his wrist at Saber. "And here I thought she'd contract us for some wetwork... Now that'd really be nice for business."

"It sure feels like forever since our last contract," Saber said.

"Indeed it does, well, as to the first on her list..." Shirou spent the next few minutes writing down locations and facts of the creatures they needed to "hunt" in order to get what Rin wanted. They were supposed to be located at certain spots in the Labyrinth, and needed to be harvested, then used quickly for the ritual before its potency disappeared.

"You folks won't be having a veteran, highly-skilled necromancer with twenty-five years of experience on hand," Kairi said, pointedly indicating himself, "So I hope your Master's got some skills at extraction. It's not quite like gutting or boning a beast, but it's close. I'm sure she's got ritual knives that'll help purify any possible curse factors-otherwise she'll need to use some hardcore divination to purge them. Let's see... well, I guess that's all I can say for you, Archer."

"Thank you," Shirou said, pulling out and giving the man the bag of jewels. "You have been very helpful."

"'You have been very helpful'... Just listen to him. Tell me truly, Archer, did that Madness Enhancement really lobotomize you?"

"What do you mean?"

Kairi snickered, and made the jingling payment disappear through some sleight-of-hand. "Because I thought Rin Tohsaka was going to give me a piece of dead thing as payment, and yet the smell of death's still on ya. And since it is..." The man leaned over his makeshift desk and crossed his fingers over the top. "What else can this necromancer do for ya Archer?"

"You're quite a character," Shirou muttered, producing, then tossing him the severed hand. Kairi raised a brow, but said nothing of the notion of being casually thrown a piece of dead meat.

"Hum... traces of mana still left, clean cut through the bone and muscle..." Kairi took a sniff. "Traces of one, maybe two enhancements, severed from the rest of the network... Question, is the man dead?"

"I don't know," Shirou shrugged.

"Ah, so _that_ 's why there's still a whiff of the Malebolgian Mark. Moving on... there's remnants of pretty strong magic in here, which I would assume to be a Command Seal. With the Command Seal you could've given it to your Master, Archer, but it's interesting that you did not. I will assume that those things disappeared off somewhere. With those Command Seals, this thing would've been a lot more valuable. Without it, well..." Kairi made a face. "What is it, 40? 50? Whaddya think, Saber?"

"Why ask me, idiot?" the Servant said.

"Hmm... let's make the final price 45, then."

"45 of what?" Shirou asked.

"Bits," Kairi repeated, as if it were the most obvious thing to say, his brow raising slightly. "Quantum bits and pieces."

"Will it be enough to get me that piece?" Shirou asked, pointing to a dusty revolver he had seen on his first scan of the room.

"Oh, so you're interested in bartering? Well unfortunately, no, Archer, the hand wouldn't be enough." Kairi snorted and pointed to a box beside him. "You can buy this complete ceramic tea set though. It's cursed, but it'll do your Master good to serve it to enemies, or you could even kill your Master yourself."

"About how many 'bits' would it take for the gun?"

"I'll give it to ya for 900."

Shirou regarded the man with the forbidding face for a few moments. "How much would that hand get me-if it had a Command Seal."

"Buddy, for even one Command Seal, I'd give you the gun, go down on my knees to suck your cock, then give you credit for every piece of junk in this place."

"Aha!" cried the Servant. "You finally admitted it's junk!"

"Not now, please, Saber," Kairi said. He looked intensely at Shirou. "I freely admit to the business being so broke I need frigging Command Seals to stay afloat. But them's the breaks in this town, and with this I can barter entry to the Labyrinth, then find me more of them rare materials to sell."

That was weird; from what Rin said the man supposedly was swimming in wealth. "I see..." Shirou said. "Well, that's something to look forward to."

Kairi blinked for a few seconds before he slapped his hand on his head. "Aw, fuck me, was I just being taken on a ruse by a Servant? Shit, that was really good, Servant Archer. Really... classic and all. And here I thought _something_ would happen, with the way you said, 'What if this thing had a Command Seal'-Hahaha, joke's on me. Fucking kill me now."

"I apologize if I gave off that impression," Shirou said. He wondered what the man would have done if he'd showed off his "thousand" Command Seals. Then again, if Shirou had known how to transplant the Seals to someone discreetly, he would've gladly taken Kairi Shishigou on his offer (obviously except the fellatio).

And so, Shirou had to settle for browsing the shelves for something he could use that was within the price range for the severed hand by itself. He bought a few ingredients, pieces of dead beasts he could use for some of his magecraft. He bought one of the cheap catalysts on "sale", wondering if he could barter it somewhere else. Then he rounded off the purchase with a few bullets to finish off the rest of his money.

"Whatcha buying bullets for, with no gun?" Kairi asked.

With a small smile, Shirou hid the bullets in his pocket. "Now that is a trade secret."

He bid farewell to Kairi Shishigou and his Servant, with a promise to return when he was able. The necromancer looked less than enthused now, a contrast to his initial attitude.

Once outside, Shirou walked for a few more streets before he said, "Saber."

"I am here, Shirou," she said, over the telepathic link Masters and Servants shared.

"How was it, Master?" Louise asked.

"I didn't get what Rin needed, but they pointed us in a direction." What was worrying him more than having to find the materials was something else that Kairi Shishigou had mentioned. But he shelved that thought for later. For now.

"Still, that child was interesting," Saber mused.

"'That child'?" he echoed. All he heard next was a disturbing sounding chuckle.

"Oh, it's nothing," Saber said quickly. It didn't sound convincing, particularly when Saber went back to chuckling right after. He had never heard his Artoria be so darkly amused like this, not even when she had been trying to teach him a lesson. What had she seen back there that had made her go on like this?

"...Almost a shame I never got to appear," she next said. "I would've loved to see the look on her face." When he wanted to know what she meant, he was met with absolute silence for the rest of the trip.

* * *

Rin made a long, lingering sigh. Her head sank back into the leather cushion of her seat.

"I almost didn't want to believe it, but that's really what he said?" she asked.

"Yep."

Rin looked again at the piece of paper on which he'd written the facts as Shishigou had stated. "These are a whole range of categories... which means we'd be trawling through hundreds of rooms before we're finished."

Shirou stroked his beard. "Well, we can always find a different solution to the problem."

After a moment, Rin shook her head. "No. No, we're going straight with the plan. I can't pass up this opportunity."

"Huh..." Shirou glanced at her Archer, who stood silently near the door. Now that he knew the Servant had been infused with something Shishigou had implied to be "unnatural", he suddenly had a lot of foreboding about what she had wanted him to get, when they'd finalized the plan that morning.

" _Let's just give you Presence Concealment!_ ", was what the young woman had said. " _Well, it'll be a weak one since you're not an actual Servant. But it'll help you get to some type of 'astral form', as if you were!"_ The words had been accompanied with a voice and face filled with cheer that he couldn't help but smile at her antics.

But that was before. Now that smile took on a more sinister aspect, as that of a mad genius about to embark on a new project on a particularly willing subject.

"He said he was open to the idea of being hired to acquire the materials."

Then a cramped look came over her face. "Now that I cannot do. My gems supply's a little... strained this month. Perhaps on the start of the next... Hmm, I wonder if he'd accept an I.O.U..."

As Rin muttered to herself, Shirou sat back and thought about trying to find a way to get a Command Seal from his arm onto something else. He really needed that gun, and a few other things only possible with a few more of those "bits".

"Well, no other time to start than the present," Rin cried, slapping her fist on her other palm. "Give me a couple of hours to get ready, Bob, and let's meet at the basement."

Shirou used the time allotted to discuss things further with his Servants. He didn't give voice to his concerns about the ritual Rin was planning, as that would probably rile up Saber even further.

"The Labyrinth seems a dangerous place," Shirou said. "For the duration of our stay, and until we can determine if it's safe, you should probably stay in spirit form indefinitely, Louise."

"But how will I be able to help you?"

"Just be on the lookout, like back in the City. Besides, this way, Rin wouldn't get too suspicious about you. It's Saber who's supposed to be your Master, after all."

After running down a couple of contingency plans with Saber, Shirou went on down to the basement, to the room where he'd first entered Tohsaka's mansion. Rin was already there, several tomes floating on the air next to her. Her nose was buried in a scroll of paper.

"I'm just confirming our destinations to come," Rin said, without looking up. "Just stand by on the circle over there, Bob, if you please." Rin's Archer was also there, standing by. In that stiff, almost unmoving pose, he seemed like a stone sentinel.

"I know this may be pointless to ask," Rin said. "But you are bringing your Servants right?"

"That's the plan."

"Well, good. Now we can probably split up to cover more ground." Heaving a great sigh, Rin rolled up the scroll and stepped into the circle. She thrust her arm out and cried, "Open, sesame!"

The far wall, which he'd passed through from the forest, glimmered after Rin said those words. A great blast of wind surged from the wall, almost buckling Shirou's knees. A moment later, Rin strode confidently into that storm, disappearing into the wall with a small pop.

Shirou hurried to follow.

* * *

He of course did not expect to see the forest again. It was still jarring to see something else entirely, even if it did look like the inside of Illya's old castle. Torches lined the stone walls, illuminating a single iron door that lay at the end of the hall. Rin was there waiting for him, her scroll unrolled before her.

"Welcome, I suppose, to the Labyrinth," Rin said. "I've already told you of its nature, but now to show you how it works in person."

"This place is?"

"One of many 'entrance' rooms that we magi can force the Labyrinth to take us. It should be noted that the Labyrinth is indeed a chaotic place. If you entered it and encountered a forest, typically on the next go you'd find a desert instead, or a castle like this. You would then be unable to exit the way you came, because the 'entrance' now led you to somewhere else. Now you're lost. It makes it difficult to create an empirical topographical chart for the whole place. But over time, we've adapted methods to counter some of the Labyrinth's features.

"First, we've developed a ritual known as [Unbound Ariadne]. It applies a concept to oneself, similar to the one that defeated the Labyrinth of legend, where one 'can always return to the origin'. It only works the one time, so we apply the ritual every time before we enter, or we're forever lost inside the place. When you stood inside that circle, the ritual had already bonded to you-so we're safe, relatively. We can find our way back to the mansion with no trouble.

"So what happens if unfortunate circumstance, or a rival's malice, closes the entrance behind us? That ritual becomes useless, so prudent magi like myself install the [Magic Words of the Forty] inside the very heart of our mansions. It's a door that leads to several of a hundred 'entrance rooms' in the Labyrinth, like this one, or that forest you were in. What's unique about the special doors is that it forces the Labyrinth to always be anchored to those specific entrance rooms. They're quiet, relatively free from beasts and is itself a room, which means no native element of the Labyrinth can pursue you from another room.

"It's an expensive operation, and we have to keep paying bits monthly to the Harway family (who've patented the process, damn them). This is why I couldn't hire Shishigou-I'm tapped out from paying for upkeep."

Rin walked over to the wall on their left. He felt her infuse some energy, into her surroundings, forming some sort of wellspring of mana underneath her feet. "I'm moving us to another room, take my hand!" she told Shirou. He rushed to take it, and instantly felt like someone had grabbed the back of his clothes and tugged. A white flash filled his eyes, and not a second later, he saw that he was in someplace else-a rugged slope extended before them, and snow-encrusted pines surrounded them.

"Master, enemies!" Saber said. Shirou whirled, also sensing them, his bow already Projected. He looked around, and saw tall, spindly things, like twigs and branches merged to form a humanoid form, striding towards them through the trees with the sound of rattling bones.

"Now that's an interesting magecraft," Rin said, her eyes on his bow. "But forget about them. We ain't needing materials from them. Let's get on back to the entrance and try another route."

After another white flash, they were back at the indoors of the castle from before. "Illuminating, isn't it?" Rin said. "I wanted us to get through to someplace I knew, but the Labyrinth sent us there instead. It's frustrating, sometimes, but that's why I pay the Harways for this."

Shirou let his bow fade. "Where did you intend to go? And couldn't we just use the door over there?"

"Oh, you want to explore this room? Go right on ahead, but it won't lead you to another room. I think."

"How do you move from room to room then? Does it require another ritual?"

"Nope." Energy began to pool from beneath Rin again. "Just throw a punch made from mana at the walls. Best way to explore a maze." He took his hand, and off they went again.

After a couple of wrong turns, where they ended up in a storm-drenched seaside cliff with large, disturbing shapes lurking in the murky horizon, and then at the outskirts of a medieval looking town, whose inhabitants Shirou was prepared to swear to be faceless people.

"The Labyrinth, despite its random nature, actually still has landmarks, of a sort. They're places we can easily teleport to provided we have the right materials. It's been anchored to the City by pioneer magi, and they're useful for people who can't afford the Harway entrances."

"Why didn't we use them, then?"

"Because with the exception of a very few, they're kind of dangerous places. They're the complete opposite of the safe entrance rooms. One example is Csetje Castle, a menacing area where countless magi have entered and never returned.

"And as for the 'safer' landmarks? Filled with opportunistic magi, probably the same type of people who attacked my mansion. They're the ones who couldn't afford [Magic Words of the Forty]. I wouldn't want to teleport to those landmarks even if we were on the run from dangerous creatures."

"So moving from room to room's the only way forward?"

"Pretty much. Well, there's a pattern we can exploit: for example Shishigou says the 'Organ of Deceitful Images' can be found from Swamp Toads, which from the bestiary are said to be found in swampy areas. We just need to keep breaking down the maze until we can find a swamp, and hope the creatures are in that room."

"I see." He was beginning to realize that exploring the Labyrinth and hunting for materials would be a tedious task. No wonder Kairi Shishigou would charge so heftily for his services. Nonetheless, he took Rin's hand, and off they went.

* * *

"Uh-oh. I know this place," Rin said. They were at the bottom of a hill, glazed brown by a distant sunset.

"Enemy Servant," Saber announced in his head. That was redundant, as Shirou had himself seen the shape moving in at them at high speed from the top of the hill.

"Oh crap." Rin actually sounded worried.

"Should we flee? Or fight?"

"Neither, it's our, well _my_ responsibility as a magi to see to this troublesome fellow. Just stay on guard, Bob, and don't say a word, please. Let's not rile up the Stray Servant."

Shirou watched as the figure became more distinct to his eyes. It was a scrawny, brown-skinned figure, wearing a skimpy outfit of white. It wore some sort of veil over its head, and wielded a multi-colored blade.

"I told you about Stray Servants, right, that they can escape to the Labyrinth and stay there indefinitely?" Rin said, in a whisper. "Well, meet the very first one, an egregious example of irresponsibility which echoes into time. She has grown so bloated and powerful that it would take an alliance of all True Masters to take her down, an impossible event. She endlessly wanders the Labyrinth, and it is hoped that in one of its infinite rooms there is something that can kill her, but no magi clings to hope.

"Instead, they have no choice but to appease her, if ever she is encountered. And that's a silver lining, or we'd never be able to explore the Labyrinth again. Luckily, she is somewhat simple-minded, or dim-though don't say that to her face or you'll end up just a tiny speck of mana in this place. Just answer her questions truthfully, don't contradict her, and we can be on our way."

"If she's so dangerous, why don't we run?"

"Because she'd be angry, and she'll get into a foul mood for the next few days slaughtering any magi who crosses her path. And that's bad, especially when they get to asking her who'd insulted her. Running away is an insult. It'll be a hit to my reputation, even if I'm a True Master. Shush now, she's here." Rin curtsied at the Stray Servant, who was already within hearing range. "I bid you greetings, oh wonderful and powerful Scourge of God! Glorious Maiden of the Steppes, oh all-powerful Altera!"

The speeding blur swept past Rin, and barreled in on him. Sensing no hint of hostility, Shirou stood there cautiously, meeting this Altera's eyes firmly with his own. They stared at each other for a full moment.

Then the woman scrunched up her nose, and made a sniffing sound.

Shirou stood bewildered, as the woman repeated that sound, tilting her head this way and that, all while sniffing. Then she circled him, still sniffing, like a dog sizing up an unknown object with its nose. Altera came full circle, and stopped again in front of him. It felt a little unnerving to be scrutinized by her clear eyes, like being regarded by a soulless automaton doing a successful caricature of a human being.

"You." She paused. "You smell familiar. You smell... precious. Who are you?" Behind her, Rin waved frantically with her arms, mouthing something silently.

"Bob."

"Hrm..." Behind her, Rin made a frustrated face and slapped her forehead. "I sense you are not telling the truth. This upsets me." Rin's expression turned to one of horror.

"Ahhh, it's nothing, he's nothing, great and honored one!" Rin cried. "He is but a simpleton, too new to the ways of-"

"The magus will silence herself," Altera said, without turning around. And so Rin did.

"Do you know me, Bob?" asked Altera.

"...No."

"That is troubling," the woman said. "Because I can smell you, so you are you. You are supposed to be you. Yet your face is not you. So it cannot be you. This is troubling."

"I assure you, I would have remembered knowing someone as remarkable as you."

"Perhaps I am mistaken, yes." The woman blinked. "I shall think on this." And then she kissed him.

Shirou stood like that for a while, wondering why this brown-skinned beauty was suddenly kissing him out of the blue. It was just a meeting of the lips, nothing quite vulgar, but it felt warm and intimate.

After breaking the kiss, Altera's expression did not change. "Yes. It does taste of you. But then the smell is not you." She closed her eyes. "A despicable problem. I shall see you again, perhaps, once I know the truth. We have a long ways to the end of this dream, after all. Farewell."

And then she disappeared, like she were turning into spirit form. The warmth of her lingered, as did the questions.

Shirou heaved a sigh, only to see Rin staring at him, wide-mouthed. "What... the hell was that?"

"Wooow, that Servant was so bold!" Louise said in his head. Saber said nothing.

Behind her, the ever-silent Archer touched thumb to forefinger and gave him an "okay" sign.

* * *

 **ATTENTION READERS!**

Earlier in the story, notice the two pieces of details presented:

 _"A big whiteboard on the right announced some sort of "special" on something called catalysts, asking the reader to stake their luck."_

and also,

 _"He bought one of the cheap catalysts on "sale", wondering if he could barter it somewhere else."_

For the curious, Kairi Shishigou's list was as follows:

1\. hair from a fox tail

2\. soil-caked fragment of a plow

3\. petal from white flower (maybe it's a lily? -M)

4\. cloth fragment, blue and white (Zouken tells me it's Japanese but I'm not convinced)

5\. old dragon scale, practically indestructible but looks battered, like someone punched it too many times

6\. chipped golden fragment (have a hunch it's a catalyst for Atalante but not sure, try it out)

7\. bronze reins

8\. bone fragment (CAUTION: cursed)

9\. segment from Japanese warrior armor, wooden, infused with weak magic

10\. creepy-looking hacksaw, dried blood on edges

11\. frayed leather girdle

12\. old, tattered dress (can also wash it up and wear it yourself)

13\. crucifix (no, really it's a catalyst, swear to God)

14\. parts for some mask

15\. vial with strange shit inside (don't try it, I sure didn't)

16\. sheet of paper with Chinese writing (gibberish, supposed to be code for something)

17\. origami swan

18\. ornate torc

19\. griffon feather (wing)

20\. baby sphinx tail

21\. mane from a dire lion

22\. broken fragment of a magic wand

23\. wrinkled card with the class symbol of Archer (it really is a catalyst, swear on me mum)

24\. old light bulb (okay, I'm not just listing random junk, I FOUND these in labyrinth)

and many more! Just ask the friendly proprietor!

So now the question remains-what did Shirou buy?

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Thanks for reading! I've got not much to say this chapter, other than that. I'm busy trying to set up P-reon, while also penning another story, but look forward to next chapter!  
**


	11. Hunting

(((Chapter 10))) **  
**

The punch sent him reeling for quite a distance. His back crashed against a boulder. He withstood the force of impact through sheer guts and a well-timed Reinforcement of his muscles. He spat a gob of blood-soaked spit, and glared at the enemy.

The creature, whose name according to Kairi Shishigou was a "skull husker", flexed its thick, wiry arms, shaped like coarse tree trunks, and barreled down on him with an ululating noise. It strode on feet that split the ground with every step, and made to finish pummeling him with fists the size of boulders.

Shirou took a breath to pace himself, as his newly improved blade shimmered into view in his hand. The creature jabbed once; he dodged, and cut left, right, left, in a zig-zag motion, severing the creature, quite literally, at the roots.

"Whoops." He caught the skull husker's strange white head, round as a ball. On one side of it were markings which made it look like a human skull, though comically warped into a coconut shape. He exhaled, and looked around the small clearing, where the remains of several other creatures lay:bodies impaled by jagged bolts, burnt from exploding arrows or eviscerated from his blade. He glanced over to the side. "All right there, Saber?"

The black-clad Knight was marching through the forest like she was wearing a wedding veil made of palm leaves. But on closer inspection, the veil was actually a mass of creatures all clinging to the Servant's back, biting and scratching at her with no effect. Aside from the skull husker that Shirou had fought, this "room" of the labyrinth also featured those things. They looked like undead wraiths, vaguely female in shape, wearing something like a wedding dress made from leaves, their "skeletal" frames actually made from wooden bark. Their heads also bore the peculiar shape of its cousins-round and skull-faced. They had no name, but if Saber were to be asked, then it should be "annoying pieces of shit," judging by her expression.

Though, Saber did not seem to mind these hangers-on, as if their attacks were too feeble to be noticed. She paced all over, kicking the small objects lying near the roots of the trees with practiced boredom. Sometimes, when the objects shattered, a wraith would spawn, attacking her for daring to disturb it. She would move on.

Other times, the ground would explode, and the meatier cousins would emerge with a roar-as this time it did. And yet before it could even take one step, Shirou would have already taken aim and neatly decapitated its coconut head with a jagged-tipped arrow.

Pausing, Saber turned around, swinging her oversized green veil and stooping to pick up the freshly cut head. She tossed it at the pile of heads they'd gathered, then moved on.

Shaking his head in frank admiration of the Servant's professionalism, for lack of a better word, Shirou made his way to the pile of coconuts. It resembled a macabre display of bleached-white skulls. Shirou tossed in his latest acquisition and then sat down heavily on the ground.

Louise shimmered into existence in front of him, then placed a cold wet towel on his face. "That was a close one, wasn't it, Master?"

Shirou shuddered into the pleasant coolness of the fabric, which contrasted well with the warm hand that held it. "I had the situation well in hand. I just didn't expect the haymaker." He could ascribe that clean punch out of nowhere to any of a lot of things: his reflexes had slowed after minutes of battle, that age had worn down his reflexes more than he was aware of, or that perhaps he had grown too cocky and misjudged the strike.

Whichever the case, he was actually glad for the battle to be almost over, and for Louise' thoughtful action.

"Thanks for this, Louise," Shirou said. The pain on his cheek was only minor, as the Reinforcement had held; though it felt like a particularly strong slap, and the stinging sensation lingered.

"Really, it is my pleasure, Master. This is the only way I can help you, after all."

There had been no need to mince words, when they'd planned before the battle. Louise did not have combat aptitude, so she would have to stay in spirit form and try to look out for danger as she was able. The voluptuous, elegantly dressed woman, who fit more in the ballroom than in the middle of the woods, had accepted it with a smile too practiced for Shirou to be comfortable with, though he wasn't a fool to insist on giving her a chance.

He slowly eased off her hand, and looked up at the Servant seriously. "I really am grateful, you know," he told her. "This is not base flattery, I really do appreciate you at our side."

Louise nodded, as if she were used to hearing such words. "Think nothing more of it, Master. I can feel your kindness, and you can be rest assured that it is not wasted." She smiled thinly as she put away the wet cloth. Shirou watched her with solemn resignation. He wanted to say that he would always protect her, no matter what, but perhaps that was exactly the thing she didn't want to hear.

"I believe that's all, Shirou," came Saber's voice. Shirou saw Saber stop, the wood spirits still harassing her impotently with everything they had. Then Saber whirled, like a top, dislodging the wraiths within the next second. And in the next moment, the black and crimson blade flashed like a dread crescent, cutting through their ethereal sinews like a blade through silk.

Saber stood there, painting a very formidable picture as coconut skulls rained down around her. Shirou was honestly impressed at the display; it was like seeing a god of the sword at work.

"Let's get to work," Shirou muttered, stooping down and picking up one of the coconut heads. Projecting a small blade, with an edge like a butcher's knife, he laid the coconut down and brought the blade down to neatly chop off the portion that held the markings. He leaned over, waiting to see what would come out of the ruined head.

A thick green substance oozed out. Shirou shook his head and tossed the pieces to the pile meant for rejects. He reached for another, and chopped it again.

Clear fluid leaked onto the grassy floor. That meant it was usable. Grunting, Shirou straightened and tossed the flat, chopped off surface to another pile. The piece reminded him of the skull-shaped, bone-white masks those Assassins had worn at Rin's mansion, and wondered if that was a coincidence. Regardless, they needed much more until they reached the required number.

Shirou took another head, and continued to work. Saber also did likewise opposite him, though she seemed cross at having to use Excalibur to chop coconuts.

* * *

The feeling of being squeezed through a tiny hole the size of a needle for a very short and indistinct microsecond never got old. Such was the sensation that occurred whenever Shirou gathered his mana, as Rin had taught him, to bypass the "walls" of the Labyrinth, in order to reach another room.

He always felt exhausted after arrival-there was the massive mana drain, as well as the aforementioned sensation of being sucked through a tiny straw. He didn't know what sort of spacetime shenanigans went on with the process, but he didn't want to know. The last thing he needed was the image of being infinitely stretched like taffy.

The familiar entrance greeted his eyes. Rin was already there, crouched near piles of objects on the carpeted floor. She looked up when he approached.

"Fourteen White Husk Faces," Shirou said, setting down the bag containing their gathered materials. "Plus a few more extra, just in case."

Rin wiped her brow. "Whew. That's one down. We're almost close to completely gathering all the ingredients."

All the gathered materials were a testament to hours' worth of work. Much of it had been spent traveling from room to room, "fishing" for the right environments where their targets would spawn. After the first few hours, Rin had then suggested they split up to cover more ground, and Shirou had agreed. Slowly they'd ranged over the infinite patterns of the Labyrinth, hunting what they needed, then squirreling away their loot here in the entrance room, which slowly accumulated into the state it was now.

Shirou had never been quite clear about the ethics of invading some poor creatures' lair and committing wild genocide to acquire their valuable parts. But there would always be the air of fragile artificiality among the poor creatures, like they had been, quite literally, dreamstuff crafted from the wildest imaginings of a gathering of children. And there never seemed to be enough of the creatures, no matter how hard they slaughtered, as if they materialized from the air with the same unending certainty as a star's energy basting a planet's surface.

Only now did Shirou appreciate the boon of that misguided wish. Preparing and rationing food, and the need to rest to ensure nutrients are properly absorbed, was valuable time shaved off from work. Without the need for sustenance, to get tired purely from exhaustion of one's body, such a demerit to work efficiency was safely ignored. And one's vitality was instantly restored from dipping into a mana fount. The addictive energies from that pool of energy were like a good night's sleep, a sumptuous feast, and a dip into a refreshing hot spring bath all at once.

So this might have been the true intention of that Wish: the optimization of work by magi who thirsted for time and not actual water. To be rid of the mundane needs of living, without wholly sacrificing one's humanity, as of a vampire. To the magi of the City, it was one hell of a boon.

And yet, even with all the hours they put in, their job was still not done. They still lacked one thing. Shirou knew what was coming, having written down what they needed himself. There was one more ingredient that Rin had been putting off for last. And it was-

"Dragon's tail," Rin said. "'Fresh from at least a mature breed'," she quoted further. "Now this is going to take a while. And doubly troublesome."

"How so?"

"Well, he specified a dragon. Not any one of the other variety of dragons documented here in the official magi bestiary." She waved a blue-covered tome. "An actual dragon. I said its doubly hard because they almost always exist in a room with 'human' or 'humanoid' inhabitants. One never finds them alone in a room, by themselves."

"Why is that?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. Some sort of symbiosis with the inhabitants? Regardless, we'll need to actually go together this time."

He nodded, and rose from where he'd been sitting. Since there was no ritual yet that could home in on someone else from across the presumed infinity of the Labyrinth, he saw the logic in moving together again, even if it did cut down on efficiency. If Shirou found a dragon on his own, then Rin wouldn't be able to reach him if she was in another room, and vice versa. It wouldn't be a problem if either of them could tackle such a creature on its own, but Rin was adamant that even she, True Archer, would have trouble without proper preparation.

"Listen, Bob," she'd said. "A dragon is one of the pinnacles of the phantasmal beasts. A creature so steeped in power and mystery that it automatically makes legends of those with the will, the wit, and the guts to slay it. Facing it alone is out of the question; it's got to be a group endeavor or bust."

A storm of energy pooled beneath Rin. Shirou stretched his shoulders, then took her hand.

* * *

He blinked. He was in a dark forest. The sky above was dark, lit by a cloud-shrouded moon. He looked around him. "Rin?" he called. He stretched out his senses: there was no one there. In fact, it seemed he was utterly alone in this strange new environment. Neither Saber nor Louise were even there.

For the first time since he'd woken up, he was utterly alone.

Had Rin made a mistake? But no, he'd felt the same sensation of being pulled from room to room. He was prepared to ask Rin about this as he pooled his mana to return to the entrance.

But then he realized that he couldn't. His eyes widened as the feeling of traveling didn't happen, no matter how much he focused, no matter how much mana he drew. His hand faltered, and he just stood there, disbelieving, as the oppressive gloom of the forest around him grew.

"What the hell?"

He tried to think about it logically. Obviously he was still inside the Labyrinth, and not in some other place, as he was still able to "draw on mana", which he was only able to do inside. He examined his surroundings with a careful eye, and concluded that it seemed to be of the same alien environment as the other rooms they had visited.

And then of course, there were the Command Seals, which glowed red when he unrolled his sleeves. They were the proof that he hadn't merely been imagining the past day.

"Command Seal...?" he muttered, a thought occurring to him. "Shit, that's right. Saber!" he called. "Saber! Louse! To me!" A red glow suffused his arm.

The space in front of him distorted, as if reality itself were being molded like clay, as two of the red wispy lines on his arm disappeared. A sound like the rushing of air through a huge crevasse erupted, and the space exploded. Shirou covered his eyes from the rush of wind. He blinked, as the two forms of his Servants now stood there.

"Master!"

"Shirou!" Before he could say a word of greeting, Saber had marched up to him and grasped the front of his clothes.

"Huh?"

"What the hell were you thinking, disappearing like that?" she shouted, her yellow, cat-like eyes glimmering with rage. "An unworthy, foolish prank, magus! I-"

"I and Saber were quite worried, Master," Louise interjected with a soft voice. "So was the magus Rin, though she seemed to hide it well. But how and why did you come here?"

"I'd like to ask that myself," said Shirou, raising a brow at Saber.

"...What?"

"Well, I took Rin's hand in that entrance room, and in the next moment, I found myself here. And then, for some reason, I couldn't transport myself back, no matter how hard I tried. And so next I tried summoning you guys."

Saber stared at him. "You waited to summon us until two hours had passed? Such irresponsibility!"

Now it was Shirou's turn to stare. He looked from Saber, to Louise. "Two hours? That can't be. I've only been here for barely a minute."

"Two hours..." Saber said, her voice quivering, perhaps from rage. "Two hours wondering if you were safe, where you'd gone, wondering if that Rin had betrayed you, sold you out. I took comfort in the feeling that we were still connected, that you were still my Master... and then..."

"Saber looked just about ready to fight Rin. I just stood there wringing my hands, feeling useless. And then your call came..."

Saber let go of him. She stood back, and composed herself by taking a breath. "I apologize for that, Shirou. That was a foolish act, please try to forget it." She then swept a critical gaze around them. "So we do not know where this is; you also cannot return with your magic."

Shirou was confused about Saber's abrupt change in manner, but decided to let it go for now. "I've tried. I certainly hope it's not a problem with that 'Ariadne' spell." That would be a perplexing problem to contemplate-being lost forever in this magical maze, hoping to meet a magus along the way just to be able to get out. Sure, there wasn't a need for him to eat, or drink, but it would surely be taxing for his mind.

He'd spent a few dozen months operating in harsh, debilitating conditions all over the world where he had to endure the cruel elements, near-constant hunger and thirst, all while living under a repetitive threat of death; and so his well-maintained mental faculties were well-stressed in the aftermath, requiring him to recuperate before critical thought processes were compromised. "I wonder if you could be returned to wherever you're needed. With a Command Spell. It would be nice if we could consult Rin about this."

The shadow of a frown crossed Saber's face. "I do not think so. But you can certainly try."

"Send me, Master," Louise said, a bit too eagerly.

"Okay. Louise, I command you to return to the entrance!" The seals on his arm glowed an angry red, but after a few seconds, they all realized nothing was happening.

"Oh my, looks like we're left all alone this time," Louise said.

Something pricked in his consciousness. Shirou narrowed his eyes. "Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case. Saber."

"Yes." She cast her hawk-like gaze all around the trees. "I sense them all around." Louise gasped, also realizing their current peril. There were a lot of enemies lurking in the trees around them. Their hostility was clear enough without needing to lay eyes on them. "Any orders, Master?"

"Go into spirit form," he said quickly, ducking behind a tree. "Louise, I'll have to ask you to stay in spirit form."

"Mmm... okay."

"Saber, when I perform the signal, please take stock of their numbers." He dipped his hand in his pocket and flicked a piece of material against his palm. Saber nodded, and dutifully disappeared along with Louise.

He peered warily around him. He was only able to get a vague sense of their presences. They could be friendly, for all he knew. But he could not see them in this cover of total darkness-there was a moon, but it was fairly shrouded in fog. If there was one thing he could thank his Projection Magecraft for, it was the ability to substitute his Projections for use in certain applications.

For instance, the piece of aged wood he'd bought from Shishigou, when combined with the chip of artifact he's shaped into an arrowhead, made the perfect flare. Shirou turned and shot it into the sky, whereupon the arrow exploded into a miniature sun, illuminating their surroundings with a flash.

Shirou took a brief look before ducking back behind the tree. The forest seemed to come alive around them, as many feral roars coursed through the trees.

Saber appeared. "See them?" he asked. She hefted her blade, which seemed to gather the darkness unto itself.

"They are many, but they are no trouble," Saber declared.

Shirou smiled crookedly. "Trace, on." A queue of arrowheads locked into his mind, cradling them as if in a quiver, ready for use. "After the third," he said, "And let's just find a good spot," to which Saber nodded. He flicked the two arrows in his hand, nocked, then fired off the next, and then on to the third flare in quick succession. Twin suns bloomed, shining down on the forest, the shadows twisting and lengthening.

A blur leaped into the forest, sword blazing, as arrows began flying through the trees.

* * *

Saber was a force of nature unleashed, mercilessly mowing down enemies along her path, even cleaving trees that stood in her way. She had all the strength of a passing storm, with the accompanying disdain for anything she left behind. A long line of destruction followed her trail as Shirou worked to follow, flinging arrows left and right as quickly and as accurately as he could.

He couldn't even get a close look at the enemies surrounding them, but he knew they were hostile, that they moved as fast as he could, and that they had skins to pierce, so he could put them down. He didn't much care beyond that, and this was a running battle with no clear end. This room might just be all forest all around, with nothing to break the monotony of trees.

"Shirou!" shouted Saber, in a tone of warning.

"So they've got flyers," he remarked, having caught sight of some of the enemies floating above the canopy of trees. They seemed to be flying on bat-like wings. Several arrowheads shot forward to the front of the queue in his mind. "I see them. Thank goodness I'm still at full mana."

"We've got to keep moving," Saber shouted over her back. She swung, and blood bloomed across Saber's front. Shirou observed a wolf-like head appear for but a brief moment before it rolled away like tumbleweed into the undergrowth. Shrieks filled the air as the flyers drew close, a black swarm against the dwindling lights of the flare.

Seeing that, Shirou quickly ignited two more flares, and shot the arrows far in different directions. It seemed then to make the creatures more violent, as if the light offended them.

Shirou squinted, then pointed towards a direction. "There! I see some sort of structure! Let's move there, Saber!"

"We're moving _towards_ the suspicious-looking thing? Are you insane?"

"We've got no other choice! We're surrounded!"

Saber grunted, as if conceding that he had a point but did not like it. She turned and made her way for the newest direction. She waved her sword, and a crescent-shaped scythe of energy cleared a path for a few hundred yards, shaking the forest with primal might.

 _Shooting arrows won't cut it anymore_ , Shirou thought. It was a question of numbers: no matter how quickly he could Project an arrow, he was still limited by the overwhelming difference in enemy numbers and his dwindling mana reserves. And he knew he still needed to allocate some to fuel Saber's blitz through the forest. Without his support, he feared she would suffer the same fate as Artoria had in his past, scrabbling for mana because of a useless magus.

He lowered his arms, and let his bow dissipate.

"Saber!" he shouted. "When I say go, use your Noble Phantasm! Strike at the left!"

"What? But that'll leave us exposed-"

"Leave it to me!" Shirou gritted his teeth, as the cylinders slotted into place in his mind. Mana roared through his body, summoned for a purpose. In his mind, images of a hundred different swords flipped past, like pictures on a reel, until they settled on one particular sword.

Its image had first come from a page depicting an artifact from legend.

Then he had seen the real thing, or at least something that carried the myriad possibilities of the truth, if not the legend. Hidden away in a vampire's demesne, it was a shadow of its glory, a sword bearing the name but lacking true power.

Without the wielder, there was no legend. Without a legend, it was just a sword.

But when the boy that was him transcribed it into his own self, recognized it as a [possibility], the traced image became something more when summoned. It was no longer just a phantasm.

"Trace, on!" Shirou roared, crashing through all the steps of Projection with practiced, desperate ease. A weight shimmered against his hand. He grasped the hilt of the Projected blade, image becoming fact, even for just a little moment. He faced the opposite direction from Saber.

"Saber, do it now! Swing, Caladbolg!"

Mana surged through the formidable spiral blade, the steel vibrating from tip to hilt, shaking Shirou's bones without mercy. It would take phenomenal strength to withstand the unleashed power, for it to do what it is supposed to.

Alas, though the blade was perfectly crafted, though no steps were skipped, the process done smoothly, it was not _the_ blade. It was just an image, bereft of heroic strength and intent. The words were even different, like a child fruitlessly calling for its father to come, though he was cold in the grave for two summers already.

And yet, however fake, the [possibility] surged. Shirou bore through the pain, and swung, fulfilling the "condition", though Shirou did not know it.

Phenomenal power crashed through the forest, turning a patch of it bald as mana-laced power scalped a sizable area. Trees were upended, blasted away, their shattered barks shredding through their enemies, even as the force pummeled their bodies until their insides turned into goo.

The hilt felt as hot as an open flame in his palm as lowered his tired arm. Caladbolg faded away, its brief purpose fulfilled, the weight a phantom in his mind.

Such was the fate of all blades he called upon. He could not lay claim to them, as their true owners could. He could not call upon their true power, then, as a mere creator of Fakes.

Yet, even for a brief while, as long as the [possibility] could exist-

Behind him, Shirou sensed the overwhelming power of a true Servant wielding its Noble Phantasm.

Excalibur, tainted black by something he didn't quite know, screamed as a pure mass of seething energy obliterated an area on the other side much greater than his fake Caladbolg had done. It hurt to look at the blade, to subconsciously analyze and trace its whole concept into him. This Excalibur had not the pure, righteous intensity of the counterpart Shirou knew, the one he held deep in his soul.

And yet it seemed to Shirou that its power was no less diminished. It did not even feel fake, as any of the Excaliburs he could make. It was as if Excalibur had always had this sort of power; a sword that would always bring victory, no matter the cost.

"...Let's go," Shirou said. Saber glanced at him, at the small mess he'd made, then nodded. Their enemies ranks decimated (for the moment) they made for the structure Shirou had seen.

* * *

As they approached, their enemies snapping at their heels, it became clear that the structure was some sort of large keep. A castle, even, with tall, imposing stone walls, and spires and towers rising from within them.

"It's a castle," Saber remarked.

"Hoh. I wonder if Camelot looked something like that." He grinned at his Servant.

"Don't be absurd," she said, a little incensed. "My castle was far more glorious than this... hovel. But it is strange for something like this to exist in the middle of this forest. Shirou, do you not think _that_ place is actually where these creatures originate?"

"Perhaps." Shirou blinked, then looked over his shoulder. "...Actually, I've just noticed that as we approach that place, our pursuers lessen in number as well."

"Hm?" Saber also took a look, scowling. Shirou actually slowed down, realizing that his words were right. Though he could still feel them lurking far away, it seemed they had lost all intention to attack, nor less pursue them. After a few hundred more feet, nothing changed; and they were now all further away.

"Could it have something to do with that place? Perhaps they fear it?" Shirou wondered.

"Shirou." Saber's voice alerted him to something that was nailed to the ground. It was a signpost of sorts, like the one usually seen in crossroads or intersections.

"Hrm... The other places written are blanked out... And the only thing here is..." Csetje Castle. It pointed straight ahead, at the castle they'd seen. "Csetje... why does that name ring a bell..."

"The magus Rin mentioned it," Saber said.

"Oh right..." Shirou stroked his beard. A dark foreboding rose up in his mind, and he quickly extinguished it. "Ahhh... I think I see now. She warned us from rooms like these. No one has ever returned from here, if I recall her words right."

"If you knew it was bad, why'd you ever end up here?" Saber asked.

"I can assure you it was never intentional, Saber," he said, a little annoyed.

Louise appeared a few feet away. She pointed excitedly towards the side. "Look Master! I can see a road over there. It's leading all the way to the castle."

"That's a nice catch, thanks Louise," he said.

However, they continued through the forest parallel to the dirt road. Shirou braced, wary for anything. Without the myriad growls and grunts of their enemies, the forest became a lot more silent. And eerie. He could definitely still feel a million silent gazes piercing them from behind.

In due time, they came to a spot at the foot of one of the castle walls. The enormous portcullis was a few hundred yards away, to their left. A dull light emanated from within the walls, so faint that it only illuminated a small portion of the forest around it. Shirou wondered if anyone, or _anything_ , even, lived here. After examining the materials on the walls, he saw that it was of a normal composite he'd encountered before.

It seemed to be just a normal castle.

"Perhaps we should knock?" Shirou wondered out loud, pointing towards the gate.

"We've no time to be polite at a time like this!" Saber hissed. "Recall the dread associated to this place by other magi. There's a reason why it is feared; why, the fact that you can't leave is already a testament!"

"Then maybe we should infiltrate!" Louise said, in the same low whisper. She walked forward and touched the stone with her hand. "Finally, a chance to use my skill, Master! Maybe we can pose as a traveling circus, where I shall beguile them with my sensuous dance, and you can join me as my partner."

Shirou snorted. "And Saber?"

"Why, she can be the circus lion."

"What was that?" Saber growled.

"Cute and vicious, in wondrous combination. Why I- Whoa-Whoaaaaaah!"

"Louise!" Halfway through her sentence, a section of the wall had slid open-causing her to lose her balance and fall into the crevice created. Shirou, leaping forward, was only able to catch the hem of her skirt before it tore.

Scrabbling forward desperately, ignoring Saber's words from behind, he sought to pursue Louise, only to find that the cavity he was in was lined with some sort of slick, slippery substance. It pushed him on and down what looked to be a narrow, human-sized tube. Crying in surprise, he slid on down and down for many feet into pitch-black darkness, and he was helpless to stop his motion.

His head slammed into something, and then he knew no more.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: The section got too long so I decided to cut it into several chapters. In fact, this was supposed to be done last week, but I realized it would be bad to cut things off on a cliffhanger, so I kept on going, to at least the end of this arc without stopping. Next section will be coming very soon, once I've more time to sit in front of the computer and edit.**

 **Thanks for reading, and have a happy holidays, wherever you are.  
**


	12. Incident at Csetje, Part 1

(((Chapter 11))) **  
**

Interlude

For a time, she could not believe how foolhardy he has been. For every moment of brilliance, every praiseworthy maneuver or brilliant skill he accomplishes; there will then be an accompanying peal of failure, of crippling mortal weakness, of ill-placed trust. She can only grind her teeth, pushing the flames of her anger deep within her to smoulder among the coals, and tell herself that the man will act his age and wise up.

She cannot fail again; and more than that, she cannot fail _him_ again.

Saber touches, punches, kicks, even tests Excalibur's edge against the castle wall. Nothing seems to be working; the stone remains unmoving, as if it hadn't just swallowed two people whole into its depths. Saber cannot get that trap to trigger again, and wonders why. She has even tried scaling the walls, but an indescribable force keeps her from reaching the very top, as if it had been warded by powerful witchcraft.

She thinks to summon Excalibur's might to cleave the pathetic walls, but she cannot do that without Shirou's word-not when it might drain all his mana.

 _He'll summon me,_ is her initial thought. Though she questioned many of the decisions he made as a Master, she can trust him to act smart when the situation called for it. Surely he would use one of his many Command Seals to call her now. There was a chance that he could not, if there were things beyond the wall that would kill him as he lay there defenseless, probably unconscious. Thinking in such a way is easy for her: it is something she would do if given the chance.

But once he awoke, once he realized his situation, surely he'd call for her, as he'd done just a short while ago. She should just be patient and wait, and hope that the unthinkable does not happen.

She waits.

She waits.

And then she waits some more.

"Shirou!" She howls, Excalibur erupting like a black torch. The wall may as well be made of sticks as far as her sword was concerned. She didn't know what was going on to that dunderhead, but so help her he'd get a taste of Excalibur for this stupidity!

But she falters, eyes widening in shock. She looks down at Excalibur, bewildered.

She feels weak. Weaker, as if strength had been sapped from her, like a vile poison spreading through her, robbing her of vitality.

She recognizes this. This is her mana supply drying up, dwindling down into dangerously low levels. For however reason, the once stable connection to Shirou has shrunk.

It's troubling. And only a fool would not see the correlation to Shirou's unfortunate mishap. She grits her teeth, and lowers Excalibur. She cannot unleash its power-not when it could scatter her like frail twigs.

Growls echo from behind. Her eyes narrow and she turns around to regard the forest. The trees seem to shiver with delight. She can feel its denizens approach in the hundreds, in the thousands.

She raises Excalibur. She crushes her mailed fist to her chest. "Hah! Come then, fools, if you dare!"

Their numbers will not break her. There is no fear in the blackened warrior's heart.

Even as a shadow of her former power, her might is yet unmatched.

* * *

Shirou

A light bloomed in the darkness. Shirou held the arrow aloft, glancing warily at the places where light pierced through shadow.

He found the source of the coppery smell of old dried blood that had filled his nose when he'd woken. At least, that's what he thought those dark splotches on the stone were. In this dim light, it could be anything, and the stench could be coming from somewhere else.

The scattered bones were more definite, though. Human, judging by the skulls, and the bits of femur and ribs lying around. He bent down to pick up a piece of rusted metal that stood out in their midst, which to his surprise was some kind of revolver, aged and twisted almost beyond recognition. Looking around he saw bits and pieces of objects that might have once belonged to these poor souls: jagged tips of blades, bits of jewelry, shards of dull, faded rocks and gemstones, frayed strands of cloth, and rotting leather.

Finding no use in ogling idly for much longer, he raised his arm. "By the Command Seal I declare: Louise, to me!" The darkness absorbed his words, echoing briefly before returning to a sullen silence. Shirou paused, waiting patiently, wondering why nothing was happening. "Louise? Louise, come to my location."

Still nothing.

"Saber!" he said next. "Saber, to me! By the Command Seal, return to my side!"

No one came.

After a few seconds, he blinked, pushing up his sleeve and wondering if he even had the Command Spells. There they were, illuminated by the flare light, and yet neither Louise nor Saber answered his call.

"Now this is bad..." he muttered. He closed his eyes and tried to glean a sense of his mana. It was still a hefty amount, but nowhere near enough for a drawn-out battle, particularly without Saber's support. If it came to a fight against creatures like the ones they just fought, he would be in trouble.

It would be necessary to conserve his energy, while at the same time trying to make sense of the situation. The last thing he recalled, he was falling through some sort of narrow tunnel or tube. He threw the light around him, wondering where Louise could be. She should have fallen to the same place as him, and yet all he could see were the skeletons and the long shadows they cast; and the all-pervasive gloom. He could not even see where he'd even entered from, and he kicked himself for getting caught flat-footed like that.

Shirou began to walk, covering up his mouth to ward off the ever-present smell of blood. It was like an old, ill-kept abattoir. He came upon the wall, and began to follow its construction towards a direction until he reached an indentation. He tested the light, and saw that there were stairs leading up from this room. They spiraled upward, as of the inside of a tower.

He ascended the stairs with marked caution. The side of the stairs were littered with old bones and the walls were stained with dark, bloody splotches and stains. Eventually, the stairs opened up to a passage, where he could spy another source of light down the right.

He turned his fading flare-light to the left, and nearly leaped from his shoes. Ruby eyes glimmered under the light from within a stone carving of a snarling dragon curled around itself. It lay nestled inside some sort of shield that was placed on top of the wall. Shirou strained to see past it into the sheer darkness beyond, but decided not to pursue it further. He turned towards the feeble light on the other side and decided to follow that.

He had a vague impression of other things perched on the walls on either side of him, but ignored those in favor of speeding swiftly to his destination. Time was a factor-he needed to find Louise, reunite with Saber, and then figure out how to escape this "room" and return to the City.

Reaching the source, he saw that the torch-light burned brightly from a chamber behind a small doorway. Creeping cautiously near the wall, he saw there was a large, circular chamber beyond. As far as he could see there were several raised sections of the room, like tiers on a cake. On the outer ring were several pillars. There was a stair that began on one side of the outer ring, which followed on and up towards the very center section, which loomed above. It was hard to miss, as Shirou's eyes were drawn to the object that lay on it.

After searching the outer ring, and making sure there was nothing of interest outside of a few old debris and some doors he wouldn't test yet-he approached the central stairs and frowned up at the ziggurat-like construction. The smell of blood was stronger around here, and there was the steady sound of dripping coming from somewhere. He had half a mind to fully analyze the structure of the room to find the source of that damned noise, but relented in order to save mana.

"Aah, screw it," he muttered, ignoring the loud, angry voice of Saber in his mind, and climbed the stairs.

The raised, rectangular object was some sort of vault, or coffin, made of stone. The surface was smooth and polished. The top cover was featureless save for a symbol he had seen before: the emblem of the coiled dragon that had given him a shock.

Slowly, he touched the tip of his finger to the stone. When nothing happened, he allowed his palm to rest on the cold, flat surface. Feeling a tad disappointed, Shirou turned around, aiming to investigate one of the doors.

He stopped and turned on his feet when a rumbling sound came from the vault. The platforms below him shook as a noise like boulders grinding against each other echoed through the chamber. With wary eyes he witnessed the top of the box slide sideways. Then, it tipped over the side, crashing to the floor with an almighty crunch.

The smell of blood wafted strongly from the vault, so much that Shirou had to cover his mouth. It felt rather nauseating, and he had waded through a literal bloodbath before in pursuit of a vampire. He took one step forward, and peered into the vault's recesses.

Wet, crimson fluid filled the box to the brim. The surface was calm and placid, like red jelly. It didn't have the look of coagulated, drying blood, which was strange for it certainly smelled of it.

Then a shape rose from the depths, neatly disturbing the still surface and splashing the red stuff all around. Shirou stifled the scream in his throat with a grunt, as he leaped a few steps down to avoid the carnage of churning, disgusting red.

He stared at the red, dripping blob in absolute silence for a few moments; and he was sure it seemed to be staring right back.

Then he scratched his head, his head jerking up and down, before he turned about and descended the stairs.

"Wait, wait, wait!" came a female voice from within the shining red muck. "I said, wait! What kind of prince are you?"

"Nope, not a prince," he called back, without turning around. "Just a guy passing around. A good day to you, strange thing in the red muck."

"Wha-but you're the first one to-ack!" He heard the sound of a body falling. Sighing, he glanced back, and saw the red blob had stumble out of the box. Then it stood to full height, regarding him through eyes that-though possessing no hostile intent, nevertheless filled him with a sense of dread. So shrugging to himself, he went on his way.

"Wait-would you not even give me the courtesy of greeting, you churl? You abominable, graceless, boor!"

"My sincerest apologies, but I don't speak with strange bloody blobs," he replied. And he had to look for Louise. He quickened his pace. "Good day."

"What are you-oh, the blood? Oh my, I apologize for that." A flash filled the chamber. Shirou, curious, looked back for the third time and saw that the red blob had become a person.

It was a young woman with a striking face and sharp eyes. She had bright, purplish hair, neatly bundled into a small, crown-shaped object on top of her head. Ample breasts, roughly as large as Sakura's had been, bulged beneath a gray boudice with tight short sleeves; further, she wore a long, sweeping red gown with intricate embroidery fashioned on the fabric in gold and silver, which covered her whole body, and which was supported by farthingales to shape the lower gown like an umbrella. She had a raised collar, like something one could from an old Renaissance portrait of a woman. She had the impish look of someone who was keeping a devilishly amusing secret. And then, the last feature he noticed of her were her fingers, which seemed to be fashioned to look like red claws.

"Am I presentable now, my prince?" she asked, taking hold of her gown and curtsying. She snapped her finger, and the cover on the box she'd fell out of slid back up to seal it shut. She looked around and pouted. "Though it would seem that you were right to be suspicious. It all looks so dreadful... and dark. I told them to keep this place presentable, for when you came, and here they forgot my instructions entirely."

"Okay, how did you get all that blood out so fast?" he asked, peering at her suspiciously.

"Blood?" She cleared her throat, and covered her mouth with the back of her hand. "Oh, ohohoho, 'twas no blood, my prince. 'Tis a wonderful elixir brewed by master alchemists for the purpose of rejuvenation."

"Uh-huh. Sure looked like ordinary blood to me. And smelled like it too."

"A coincidence, nothing more," she said waving her hand and giggling somewhat nervously. "Now, am I correct in assuming you're a magus?"

His eyes narrowed. The woman continued, talking like she were facing a mirror. "Then that is a pleasant coincidence! For I am a Servant with no Master, and have been waiting ever so anxiously for the right Master to come along. And here you are, my prince."

"You're a Stray Servant?"

"How rude." She placed her hands on her hips. "I am no stray like a mongrel dog, my prince. I am a wise and powerful Servant, summoned a while back to this strange place, in order to await a Master who would come for me."

"Why do you keep calling me a prince?" he asked crossly. "I'm no prince."

"Oh no? Are you not here to waken me, then take me as your own?"

He shrugged. "I apologize for this, ma'am, but I already have a Servant. Two, actually, if you'll believe it. In fact, I'm looking for one of them. She was taken inside this place, and I've no idea where to go. Do you happen to know this place?"

The woman stared slackjawed at him. "You're... not going to take me? Steal me from my castle, carry me off into the horizon, and make me your own? B-but why? You're here... Oh dear..." The woman put a hand to her forehead, and staggered against the box, as if she were close to fainting.

"Are you okay?" Despite the situation, Shirou found his legs moving forward, concerned about the woman.

"No, I am not okay," the woman said faintly. "My head's just spinning... like my usual migraines, but worse, somehow... I..."

"Don't worry. I'm sure someone will be your Master," Shirou said, with concern. "It'll just take a bit more patience."

"But I can't wait for that long!" she wailed suddenly, the sound almost like a screech that pierced through his eardrums. "Am I to go back and sleep, and wait, and hope, and wait some more? Well, I don't want to!" She took out a kerchief and sobbed loudly into it. Shirou stood, bewildered, unsure of what he should do. This was a situation so bizarre that he could not find the right way to act. She wasn't an enemy, or so it seemed; and yet appearances could deceive, and he had long disciplined himself to be resistant to tears, if it came in the way of his work.

"By the way, I should like to ask if you own this castle. If that's so, could you tell me where my friend is?"

"I _am_ the owner of this castle," the woman said, in-between sniffles. "But I know of no one being taken here. I gave orders to only let my prince come through here. And since I've not met anyone else in a long while, I don't know anything about your friend."

"No, but really, she should be here. She and I... we were pulled down here from a trap-hole in the castle walls. She _must_ be here. Please, could you guide me?"

"...Only if you'll be my prince," came her sullen voice.

Shirou almost sighed in exasperation. "I can't be your Master."

"Don't need that, I need a prince."

He clucked his tongue. "Fine, fine. I'll be your prince. For a while," he added under his breath. Despite the woman's outer charms, there was something quite unnerving about her. It probably came from his first impression of her being dunked in literal blood.

"Okay. Then say it. Say you'll promise to be my prince." She raised her head, and it seemed to Shirou that behind her defiant, tear-stricken expression, there was a hint of cunning that was so transparent that it would take a simpleton to miss. It was almost like a child trying its best to cry just for one extra treat.

"If I do, do you promise to help me find my friend? And to see that she is unharmed?"

"Yes!"

"So abrupt..." He grumbled, taken aback. "Very well. I swear..."

"'To be'..."

"I swear to be your prince."

A thunderclap seemed to echo from somewhere as Shirou's whole arm glowed. Puzzled, he rolled up his sleeves, and found that a new symbol had wormed its way around that of Louise' former Master's, shaped almost like a serpent. It attached itself like so many roots to the other red markings on his skin, until it became almost indistinguishable against the whole mass.

"Yes!" The woman crowed. "I'm so happy! My prince, my prince!" She hitched up her gown and descended the stairs in a hurry until she stood right in front of him. She curtsied again, and with a glowing smile clasped her hands before her chest. "I have always believed this day would come. I had almost lost all hope, sleeping in my blood bath-"

"'Blood'?"

She continued without blinking, as if he hadn't interrupted. "-But I am so glad to have been proven wrong! Oh, do forgive me, I have gotten quite ahead of myself. I am Servant Rider, at your service, my prince. This whole land, this whole castle, even... this body," she said, dipping her head and eyeing him knowingly, "Are yours to explore. Just say the word."

Shirou stared at the woman for a few, dumbfounded moments. Her expression was so warm and brilliant that he felt sad for just acceding to her request without much forethought. It was like accepting a young, precocious child's proposal to become his wife, and then suddenly having it come true, wedding dress and all. He supposed it had taken a while for the fact that he'd gotten a new Servant, not too long after his previous, to sink in his mind. And yet here was the proof, and he would have to accept that he'd just taken on this eccentric woman, whom he still had a bad feeling about, as his Servant.

"... Right," he said, smacking his lips and nodding. "Let's move on then... Rider. Please help me find my friend."

The woman's eyes fluttered, but then her expression turned confident as she smirked. "Of course. As this is my castle, it is only natural that I know all about its guests, if there are any. That's right... yes, let's move out of this basement first. I left this majordomo to take care of things while I slept-they should be able to tell us about this 'friend' of yours, my prince. Leave it to me!"

In the face of such youthful exuberance, Shirou could only nod his head. "Yes. Good. Lead on, then."

* * *

He had fought in some arguably bizarre situations before. And this one ranked pretty much up there. He was inside a "room" of an infinitely polymorphic bounded territory, walking through the bowels of a dark and brooding castle with a being wearing high-class noble clothes, who saw him as her prince.

Shirou could feel her eyes constantly gazing at his back, so intense that it could have burned. As they walked on in awkward silence, he could feel Rider's energetic enthusiasm emanate from the Servant in palpable waves. It reminded him of his Fujimura Taiga, usually when they were hiding some sort of prank. Except that this young woman didn't seem to have any bad intentions.

The good intentions were still kind of troublesome, though. He had no idea what this "prince" business was about, but, having accepted another Servant from some strange mechanism, he had to tread lightly. A Servant was still a Servant, and he was only a man.

"... So this is your castle, I take it? It seems... bleak."

"Ahh... these are the dungeon areas, my prince. Opulence would be rather out of place, would it not? Rest assured, the other parts of Castle Csetje will be more to your taste. Rooms befitting nobility."

"If these are the dungeons, then why are you here?" Shirou asked. "Is it not strange for the ruler of a castle to spend time here?"

"My lord is certainly sharp," Rider said, with a cramped face. "But as I'd said, I had been waiting oh so fervently for you, my prince. You just caught me at a bad time. That room was the perfect place for me to partake in some... alchemy, while I waited."

"Alchemy? What kind of alchemy?" The only alchemy he was familiar with was the sort practiced by the Atlas Academy.

"Er... some folk remedy recommended to me... It sounds quite foolish now that I think about it. B-by the way, could you tell me about yourself, my prince? Who is this person you're looking for?"

He had a feeling she seemed uncomfortable with the line of questioning. Not that he didn't get it; he _did_ find her completely immersed in blood.

"She is my Servant, like you are now, of course. She fell into the hole outside your castle, and I do not know where she ended up, as I did fall along with her."

"Ah, perhaps my majordomo can help," Rider said confidently, puffing out her bosom. "After we inform her that I am awake, and that you are here, my prince. I am sure everyone in the castle will be glad for the tidings."

Shirou stopped, having heard a rustling from ahead. The corridor was illuminated by soft candlelight, and yet the radius of light was still small, insignificant patchwork against a black tapestry. A dark shape moved, stopping barely behind the torchlight's radius. "...Is that one of your people?" he asked.

"Hm? Oh, you there!" Rider stepped out from behind him and beckoned with her slender arm towards the unknown figure. Her manner was more imperious and cold, seeming now to fit the noble dress she wore. "Go on and inform the majordomo that the prince has arrived, and, with good fortune, I was there to greet him and welcome him to the Castle."

The darkened figure made a sound like a wolf licking its chops. It growled, and red eyes glimmered in the darkness.

"Watch out!"

The cur charged, clearing several feet in seconds. He moved to cover Rider's body and quickly shot two serrated arrows into the creature's hide. It collapsed with a pained whine. Its body dissolved into smoke as it died.

"Eh? What? What on earth is going on?" Rider asked, her voice quavering and furious. "...I thank you for protecting me, my prince! My sincerest apologies, also. I did not think any of my servants would have the audacity to attack! I do not begrudge your killing that treacherous pest."

"You call that thing your servant?" he asked incredulously.

"Of course, my prince," Rider said, as if it were an obvious fact. "Only the most vicious and brutal can be effective guards at Csetje Castle. Not to worry, I am sure that was only a maddened beast, nothing we need to concern ourselves about."

"I am concerned, especially if they all end up hostile. How many of those things do you even have?"

"Oh, Csetje Castle is always equipped to defend against any and all threats. A minimum of ten thousand men-at-arms and guards is the gold standard, nothing less."

He gaped. Ten thousand of those things inside here, and he could not see a mana fount in sight. This was slowly turning into a nightmare.

"I truly hope that's the case," he said, as they hurried along the corridor.

It turned out not to be the case.

They'd only just made it to what Rider called her personal garden when they were beset by three creatures, each of whom utterly ignored her admonitions to stop. This time Shirou had to move in with his sword, having calculated that Projecting then repairing the katana would save mana than using his arrows. Fortunately, they fell easily to his desperate swings.

"How rude!" Rider exclaimed. "Have all my subjects become mindless dolts?" Shirou looked around desperately, trying to figure out where Louise might be. "It is important that we meet with the majordomo. Only she alone can give me a proper explanation as to why the guards have become ever so disloyal."

Then stranger things showed up other than the dark beasts. As they reached the grand hall that was to lead to Rider's audience chamber, a band of large, hulking things awaited them. They were as suits of armor, animated, great, bloody spikes protruding from every aspect of their bodies. Upon seeing them, they drew their swords and approached.

Shirou cast a desperate eye around. They were outnumbered, and he wasn't sure if he could match these things.

"In the name of the dragon, and of the blood I bear," Rider exclaimed, once more stepping out of his shadow to meet the approaching things. "Desist, my servants! Listen to your master, and respect the prince! I command you!"

Yet still they walked, now taking up a dangerous position that hemmed them in against the wall. It was like a deadly game of chess, him escorting the last piece as a sole pawn, facing off against fearsome knights and towering rooks. When Shirou saw them ignore Rider's command, he knew this would not work, and made to retreat, to find another way to the audience chamber.

"You dare? You dare!" Rider shouted, her beautiful face now twisting into a mask of rage. "I gave you form, gave you purpose, foolish things! For insulting the prince, for insulting _me_ , I dismiss you! Begone!"

"It doesn't look like they're listening, Rider," Shirou observed, desperately trying to see if there was a route to victory.

She stamped her feet. "How can this be? This is my Castle! My rules!"

"Not anymore it isn't," came a voice. The great doors leading to the audience chamber slammed open with a thunderous noise. Footsteps echoed on the marble floor as the figure that emerged came close. The suits of armor halted in their tracks as the stranger moved along them.

"...You!" It was a humanoid figure covered in smoke, vague and indistinct. Red eyes gleamed from its head, which he met firmly when it gazed at him. "Majordomo, what is the meaning of this? Rebellion in my house?"

"This is no longer your castle, foolish worm," said the dark figure. "The moment you let this ridiculous notion of a prince in your mind, you became tainted, forever losing the right to rule over Csetje Castle as its rightful lord. I had thought you would sleep forever in that blood bath, hoping forever for an astronomical impossibility. But it seems you've gotten your Prince. I am happy for you. At least you will be joyful in death."

"I _am_ the ruler of Csetje Castle!" Rider cried, thrusting her arm out. "By the blood of the dragon, I command you, disappear!"

The dark figure chuckled. "Witless, toothless dragon. Though you may have given birth to this whole Castle, and all who live in it, you forsook your rights over it when you abandoned responsibility to pursue a meaningless wish. But more than that, you cast off your whole _identity,_ as if it were a piece of clothing, easily discarded. But such things are not easily tossed aside my dear, and you were too unwise to not see it."

"Speak sense, idiot!"

"You may be a Servant, with a Master, but this Castle is no longer yours. Your control over it has been revoked, and I have taken its place."

"You, lowly majordomo?"

"No simple secretary am I," said the figure. It turned and pointed to the suits of armor. "By the blood of the dragon, I command you, hunt them down!"

With an almighty groan, the suits drew their swords and approached. Shirou slowly backed away, realizing fighting them on this open space would be brutal and near-impossible. He grabbed Rider's wrist.

"How can this be...?" she said, disbelievingly.

"I am, and will always be the ruler of Csetje Castle," the figure said smugly. "And you, oh crude reflection, oh vapid recollection of a vain wish-I shall banish you to oblivion, where you belong. You, and that demented child who dares sing like a croaking toad-you and everyone who profess to be me, begone! And as for you, 'prince': it is too late for your Servant."

"What did you say?' Shirou said, with narrowed eyes.

"She is already on her way to be processed. I can assure you that I have my ways to ensure every last drop of her essence is extracted. You cannot save her, no matter what you try. But then again," she snickered. "You'll be dying soon enough, anyway." The figure vanished in a puff of smoke, and it was as if a signal had been fired. He took Rider's waist and dashed backward, away from the Hall and the pursuing armor.

Growls echoed all through the halls here. Ominous shapes emerged to plague the candle-light with their twisted shapes.

"Louise, to me!" he said. His Command Spells glowed, but nothing happened. "Louise! Saber! To me!" he cried. "Damn it."

Their enemies began to swarm. Shirou took a deep breath, then grabbed Rider by the wrist.

"Wha-what are you doing?"

"Unless you can move quickly by yourself, I'll need to carry you."

Her outraged expression faltered, a flush forming on her cheeks. "P-princess carry? How love-"

Pressed for time, Shirou hauled the lady up over his shoulder, like a sack of rice. Then he charged on Reinforced legs, fleeing into the corridors of the castle.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Well, there's the second Servant. Hopefully it's not too soon of an acquisition for you folks.**

 **Countess Bathory Erzebet (Rider) is my take on an older Liz-chan. An Elizabeth that is just a bit older than the canon take on young Lizzy, while also being younger than the Blood Countess she becomes. As a result, I've envisioned her to be a lot less innocent with the notions she would be notorious for, such as murder; but as this is the period of time when she was still married, she's summoned as more of the ruler she was supposed to be before falling to depravity. Thus she carries herself with a bit more pride and responsibility. As one of my "pillar Servants" for Shirou, she will of course be explored through the story.  
**

 **I explain all this because I may or may not release a "stat sheet" later on, so this is a good time to dump info about a character that's technically an OC, while also not.**

 **This is also, in a way, what I like more as suggestions for Servants: an already established Servant in a different role. I mean, every one of your suggestions are good, sometimes even well-reasoned, but a novel approach is quite refreshing. In fact, I'm even leaning towards a good candidate for Berserker from one of you kind folks...**

 **Also, next chapter coming very soon, of course.**


	13. Incident at Csetje, Part 2

(((Chapter 12))) **  
**

Interlude

The blood disappears from her black blade.

They follow the mass of eviscerated bodies on the ground around her, which dissipate into smoky dust.

Though there are yet more, just within the perimeter of the forest, for some reason none of them try to approach.

Perhaps they dare not approach, after finding that their prey is a far bigger predator than they will ever be.

Or is it from something else?

"Shirou... you better be alive-and if you are, be damned smart about it."

She plants the sword tip on the ground and leans on the hilt. Then she waits.

* * *

Shirou

Enemies above, and enemies below. Enemies in front, get shot from the bow. Shirou rushed through the corridors of this immense castle, as a wind blowing through the forest, and yet he could not outrun their enemies, who closed in all around.

"Oi! Rider! Tell me where they take prisoners to be processed!"

"What? Oof! Be careful with my head you idio-I mean, my prince-"

"Prisoners. 'Processed'. Tell me. Please. You're the master of this castle, so you should know."

"Processed for what?"

"I don't know, Rider! But that's what that majordomo of yours said. I need to save Louise before that happens!"

"No, what we should be doing is to go back there and sort the defiance from that bitch!" Rider keened. "Take her out, then take back _my_ castle!"

"I cannot take her on, Rider," he said, turning a corner and nearly skidding into a wall. "Our enemies are formidable. That's why we need to be at full strength. We need Louise to tip the scales."

"Why do we need to?" Rider insisted.

"Fine, can _you_ take on those minions, Rider? Tell me your abilities; how well can you fight them off?"

"Ah... er... um..." It was clear that the self-proclaimed lady-of-the-castle couldn't muster a response; Shirou had an inkling-just from the way she acted, and how she took action-that fighting personally wasn't her strong suit, like Louise.

"Thought so. This is the better option. So please tell me where your prisoners are usually taken, so we can get there as fast as we can."

"I-I can fight too, my prince! I'm super powerful! Super strong! If you'll only put me down, I can prove it to you!"

Shirou took a while to think on it-while also charging through hordes of monstrous beasts. "Alright, I'll allow it. But tell me first where I can find Louise."

Rider swallowed. "When... well, this only applies to intruders, understand? When bad people come, they're usually sent to the t-" She trailed off.

"The what now? I couldn't get that."

"The torture chambers..."

"Eh?"

"I said the torture chambers-!"

"No, no, I heard you the first time!" Shirou said. He didn't know why the Servant had been so reticent about the information. "So where are these torture chambers?"

She cleared her throat. "Back there. Near where I slept."

"You mean the dungeons..? Oh of course. It should obviously be the dungeons. How stupid of me."

"You're not stupid at all, my prince! If I had known a comrade had been captured by the treacherous majordomo, I would've led you to the t-the torture rooms before leaving the dungeons. Now..."

Thanks to a lifetime of running battles, Shirou had a better inkling than most about mapping an area using only the data that had been gathered personally with his own eyes and feet. He thus had a temporary image of a "map" in his mind which covered the areas he had been in while inside the castle. It was like a thread running through space leading all the way back to where he'd woken.

The dungeons, therefore, were practically unreachable now that literal swarms of dark creatures blocked their path. Then again, perhaps that was not the only way back.

"Are there any other ways we can get back down there?" Shirou asked hastily.

"N-no. I mean, if there are ways, then I wouldn't know." Rider looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, Master."

Shirou thought on that for a few more moments. It was hard to think while carrying a Servant and then also running and breaking through enemies and at the same time operating on a shoestring mana budget, but he managed somehow.

He sighed. "Well, it looks like I'll be relying on your strength then, Rider. Hold on."

He managed to get them to a secluded corner of the castle. He set Rider down, then nodded to her. "Now quickly, do it."

Rider whined, though she did hold out her hand, her long, claw-like nails spread wide. She closed her eyes, and shuddered, then swiped her other hand's fingers over her palm, making a cut. Then, her cut hand clenched, she let her blood drip all over the floor as she shakily intoned, "By the sign of the Dragon and the blood that I bear, protect me!"

The blood stains elongated, like a brush had dipped on them and started scrawling all over the floor. Then they took the shape of writhing shadows, whereupon they took shape and rose from the ground in the form of several of the enemies he had already fought-including one of the tall, spiky-armored fellows from the entrance hall.

"I am proud to present these soldiers to you, m-my prince," Rider said.

Shirou immediately took her injured hand and pressed Rin's pendant on it. "Here. Hold on to this. It will heal you." The mana within had yet to be depleted, and soon begun healing the wound.

"Th-thank you, my prince," she said, with cheeks flushed. She clutched the gem to her chest.

"Would you be able to make more?" he asked, eyeing her soldiers. Though the large, armored fellow looked formidable, he knew it might not be enough even against the hordes. And the smaller creatures he knew were easily dispatched-and were only effective as part of a larger group, as their enemies demonstrated.

"Um... That would be a lot of blood. I'd rather not, because I have so few of it and it would drain my mana, my prince-What? You're using your Command Seal?"

"I don't want to, but we need it." He clasped her shoulder. "Tell you what. I don't think we need to Command Seal yet. I have a plan: just make a couple more of them, and we'll make do."

Later, it took quite a bit of whining and whimpering before Rider managed what he needed. Now there stood a respectable force of allies that would aid his plan. At the end, Rider looked teary-eyed and clutched the jewel like her life depended on it.

"Thanks, Rider," he said, patting her head. "That'll do."

"How dare you presume to touch me-I mean, thank you, my dear prince. It was my pleasure."

" _What's this?"_ came the voice of the majordomo, booming through the walls. " _I can sense what you're trying to do, fools. Really now, my dear girl, such a paltry force! They shan't protect you._ "

Though he tried to stop her, Rider nonetheless responded, shouting at the top of her lungs, "They and the prince will be enough for you! We're coming for you, traitor!"

Shirou slapped a hand to his head. "Rider! Please, stick to the plan we made."

"Oh, very well, Master," Rider said, though she looked like she would rather exchange more harsh words with the disembodied voice.

 _"One or a thousand, it does not matter, fools! This castle will bury you!"_

"Rider, now!"

* * *

Interlude

She leaps and attaches herself to the back of one of the armored behemoths. Born of her blood, and blessed by her darling. Three of them march at the front of the formation, and two more guard the rear. Behind her are the lesser minions, the fiends with feral minds and twisted bodies.

Onward they march, leaving her darling prince behind them, as they move to engage the hordes of her treacherous majordomo. She longs to bleed that bitch dry, rake her over the racks, quarter her with extreme prejudice, but she knows she cannot-not yet. Not while her own castle has been turned against her, against her prince.

The enemies are as a wave that crashes against the shore, and she can feel their hot, feral breaths, so much like the ones behind. Yet the beasts behind her are calmed by her command, while her knights are steadfast, holding up their shields with patience.

One would think that such a small force would be quickly overwhelmed. But her prince is gifted with foresight, and has granted her loyal servants a boon from his magics.

Blows rain down fruitlessly on their round tower shields, and the knights have become as fortresses that cannot be breached. One or a hundred, the shield has been enchanted to last, and they do, holding the line.

Then, from behind, the lesser creatures hurl spearlets through the cracks and gaps, the weapons' enchantments allowing them to pierce through multiple bodies before dissipating. The prince had conjured a hundred of these, and in such a small space their enemies cannot prevent themselves from being run through with vicious precision.

When their enemies are sufficiently culled, the soldiers lower their massive shields and swing massive greatswords, too big for even the prince to carry with one hand. But her minions are built for muscle, and they strike effortlessly, each powerful sweep cleaving through the remnants like a sickle reaping the harvest.

There is movement from the right, then the left. "Move!" she commands, and the soldiers make a loose circle around the lesser creatures, and hold their shields high. The storm breaks on multiple fronts now, but they are undaunted. They are as a turtle weathering the stormy sea patiently, whittling down their enemies' verve and vigor while they move ever onward, defiant.

She can only laugh as gore rains all around her, somehow delighting in the sheer carnage of this battle. She has never felt like this before.

" _A parlor game!"_ the wretch screeches from beyond the walls. " _You only delay the inevitable!"_

* * *

Shirou

He watched from afar as Rider's small force inched ever onward, surviving despite the odds. They have only tipped the scales when he Projected the necessary arms for her soldiers: swords and spears that had no true power on their own, but they were at least made of the same tough material that had struck down the automaton in Kayneth's arena. And so far it looked like it was working.

Yet projecting all those weapons to outfit the small band had been exhausting, and this next move would tire him even more. Without a mana font, failing this maneuver would cripple Shirou, rendering him useless for anything after this. But he saw no other method, no other solution to their dilemma. Without Saber, without Louise, while also facing a Servant-class force-he had to make do.

Now that the majordomo seemed to be sufficiently distracted by Rider's "last stand", Shirou could begin.

He Projected another weapon, a blade terrifying in both looks and reputation. It was a scythe, its handle filled with horrific, twisted carvings. Its sleek edge seemed to drip with the illusion of blood. Holding it now, Shirou was reminded of the enemy he'd faced, who wielded this weapon to drink deep from the essence of his victims. He felt nauseated just holding it, even disgusted at himself for having even Traced it.

Ironically, he would have to rely on its power now, in order to support him. The cursed scythe had the ability to drain mana from anything its blade pierced. That was not remarkable by itself, as Shirou had any number of mana sipping blades, but this scythe had the property of greed: it would absorb a great amount for itself before granting any to its master.

And so Shirou struck the blade on the wall opposite, and it embedded itself into the surface. Its blade changed from pale red to sickly green, as it begun to drink from the mana in the castle. Just the sign that there even was mana there for it to devour was good enough for Shirou.

Next, Shirou sat down and began to meditate. He drew from the furthest parts of himself, from the very foundation, from the core of himself that he rarely visited. From there, an image appeared in his mind, unfurling from the haze of recollection and regret as of clouds dispelled before sunlight-the lone golden sword, impaled upon the stone, slumbering.

 _Saber..._ An image of his love appeared, the true Saber in his dreams, not the blackened one he had now. His first, and perhaps only, love.

 _I'm sorry, but I'll got to borrow this for a bit. So just wait a little more for me, okay? I'll be right there._

And so, with the image imprinted upon his mind, his magic circuits churned with ready purpose. He opened his eyes, and it was as if he were looking at the world through a haze, as if nothing were real, except the shining blade in his mind.

He thrust his hand out, and closed it over the head of the scythe that had been draining the castle of mana. With a grunt, he crumpled it, crushing the head as the mana it had stored within surged through his arm. Without ritual, without proper technique, the stored mana rampaged through his body like an untamed horse. It was more energy than Shirou could safely manage-every second he held onto it he felt like molten fire coursing through his nerves.

"Trace... on!"

A golden pillar shot out from his hand, brilliant as the midday sun. His magic circuits screamed bloody murder as more and more of his mana poured through, every last bit of it, even the wild mana, supplying his Projected image with the energy needed to maintain its form. The pillar widened, lengthened, until Shirou could vaguely feel the sword's hilt in his hands, as the holy sword's image shimmered into existence.

* * *

Interlude

Saber's eyes widen, as a telltale presence pricks at the back of her mind. She looks up, and spies a familiar golden light bursting from the top of the castle, jutting out like the pillar of fire that guided the Hebrews to safety. It is an imposing apparition, and the forest seems to shrink from its awesome illumination. The sight of it reassures this Saber, who knows the nature of that light as intimately as if it were part of her body.

Then, it flashed, and the pillar moved as if guided from below by herculean hands. It came crashing down, carving through the castle like a giant's, gold-rimmed arm. An almighty roar echoed throughout the night, as the portcullis, and part of the wall surrounding it, was obliterated all in one go.

"...Impressive," she says, hurrying towards the hole. There are no other words that needed to be said.

Though the light fades quickly, as if it were a momentary phantasm, the destruction it has left behind is plain for all to see. The siege has broken through, and now to the slaughter.

* * *

Shirou

He limped through the pathway of destruction. Debris was still falling, and smoke and dust were everywhere, and through it all he leaped, hobbling on only one foot.

Depriving that accursed scythe of its feast to capture its mana cost an arm and a leg-literally. The hand that had grasped the scythe flopped about now, useless, as if all the nerves had been disabled. So too was his leg, and that was why he had to hop about on his other leg which had been Reinforced; while dragging the other leg behind him like a vestigial body part.

The limbs would heal, or so he hoped. The blades he Projected from within him had their parameters reduced by virtue of being a pale imitation of the real ones, and that went for any associated curses they held. It was a hefty price to pay, but not if he could save someone.

He held his breath as he dove into the sweltering smoke left behind by his Excalibur's blast. He hoped he hadn't caused too much destruction-only enough to break a hole through the horde, and parts of the roof.

A shadow appeared amid the smoke ahead. He raised his active hand and Projected his blade. He could still fight one-handed, but of course he did not have the time for it. He made ready to swing the blade-only to realize it was only Rider.

"M-my prince!" she cried. He landed before her, looking around swiftly to see if there were any enemies.

"Rider, it's good to see you're safe. Where are your troops?"

"Oh, I left them behind when I saw that awful blast. I'd known it was you, of course, but I was still surprised-you practically cleared out every traitor from right in front of us."

He huffed out a breath. "I apologize for damaging your castle like this. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

Rider covered her mouth and looked away. "Y-yes of course. That sounds absolutely wonderful-"

"But we must go. Come on-before they get a chance to regroup. I can't carry you now, of course, but follow along."

"I-oh, do wait!" He'd gone on forward, straight on towards the basement.

They had returned to the darkened environs to which he'd woken, and found it slightly illuminated by the swathe of destruction that Excalibur had left behind. Fires had bloomed here, woken by the powerful energies, and light spilled through from the upper levels.

"Where, Rider?" he asked.

"T-The left..." she said in a small voice. "You can't miss it... it's the one with the great dragon above the entrance."

Arriving at the place, he found it protected by hostile knights. "I've no time for this," he roared, swinging his blade. In the near-dark, his Command Seals glowed with his inner fury as he brought all his accumulated experience to the forefront, deftly parrying and striking with no-nonsense precision. His haste proved useful in the end, as he was able to maneuver between them and strike all along their blind spots before they could react.

His enemies fallen, Shirou threw his weight onto the great double doors, and rushed in, only to find a strange and gruesome sight.

Bodies hung from racks attached to the ceilings, their skin pale and corpse-like, their faces obscured within the dark. Sinister contraptions were arrayed all around, blood-caked and gleaming like cockroach shells, their sharp and nuanced implements making clear their intentions. A strong scent of decay wafted out from the center of the room, where a great big pool lay illuminated by a dozen torches.

Above it, hanging like a criminal crucified, was Louise, her face bruised, her clothes torn and bloody.

"Louise!" he rushed forward, boots scuffing on the slick floor. A great flash boomed, and smoke filled the room.

Standing before him was the shadowy majordomo, along with six of the great soldiers.

"Get out of my way," he said coldly. He eyed his enemies, and grimaced at the work he had cut out before him. He would win, that was no doubt, but it was going to be work.

"It is too late, you know," the majordomo said. "This Servant has given up the ghost, so to speak. I told you you were too late. She was already drained and tested long before you came up from the basement. That is only her corpse you see there hanging, do you know?"

He charged, and predictably the two lead soldiers crossed swords to protect their leader. And yet Shirou ignored her, even ignored the soldiers, using his lone leg to jump up over their weapons, stepping lightly on the majordomo's shoulder, before boosting himself up and right onto Louise. With an almighty roar he severed the chains holding her up, before tossing the sword aside, grabbing onto a severed chain, and kicking her body aside. She landed on the edge of the great pool, before Shirou kicked himself from the chain and landed, with a little grace, next to her body.

The pool had been filled with blood. It was a bigger sight than Rider's own resting ground, which sickened him more than Rider's. What the hell was this place?

But of course, the horrific sight fled to the back of his mind as he fussed over Louise. He hoped that kicking her to the floor hadn't hurt her too badly. And then when he touched her body he felt something that made his stomach lurch.

Her skin was pallid, as of a corpse. "No," he said, eyes wide, running his sole functioning palm over her body.

She was stiff and cold to the touch. Skin pure and white, like falling snow. A life ensnared before its time.

 _A failure to mock him, forevermore._

"I said you were too late," the majordomo said. "You did not believe me?"

"No," he repeated, and Shirou felt as if glass walls were breaking all over his mind. "No, not again... Ilya... Ilya!"

 _A smile, warm, banishing the cold of that wintry day.  
_

 _"Goodnight, onii-chan."_

The woman cackled, as the soldiers closed in, looming like implacable towers. Dimly he could feel something swell from within the murk of his soul, choking him like smoke unfurling from the dank, sulfuric chambers of a volcanic peak.

Heartbeat like hammer on the forge.

 _Thud, thud._

The brief sparks of imagination, consumed in the eternal furnace.

 _Thud. Thud._

A brief glimpse:of blades unnumbered, etched onto the rusty ground, stretching far into the misty horizon.

 _Thud. Thud._

The peak vanishes-as fire dances in the sky, freed from primordial veins.

"Youuuu...!"

It was as if he had been pierced through with countless weapons, with every bladed implement Man invented to [Slay].

[No, or rather-]

[Yes, more importantly-]

 _shriek, creak!_

[-Like his whole body was made of swords.]

"I'm going to kill you..! I'll kill you..!" He clenched his fist, screaming defiant even as the enemies close in. He showed no fear. He made to stand, his mind already Projecting an image, though he knew he was almost completely starved for mana, and might die from this. There was a storm within him now, and it could not, would not be contained. Even if it killed him, he would kill them.

There was a faint touch on his cheek. He blinked, and saw a pale hand caressing it.

It was Louise's.

"Louise? Are you okay?" Louise' smile was weak, but it was as a ray of sunshine to him.

"You... came..." Her eyes fluttered, and though she smiled her face looked like it was enduring great pain. Shirou put a hand to her neck. The pulse was faint, so faint that he could easily have missed it, but it was there.

She was still alive.

And now he beheld his enemies, and knew he had to act. Louise needed to be seen to, and he could not do that while they were still here. And so he focused, to gather all the minute strands of mana still there, to focus them onto a single, perhaps last purpose.

Yet before he could act, a crimson-and-black wave crashed through their midst, scattering them like dust in the wind. The small, dark shadow turned behind her, looking surprised as her body fell, bisected at the waist. She disappeared a moment later, like a wisp.

Eyes bulging out, he registered the appearance of Saber near where Rider stood. "S-Saber..."

"Shirou? Are you alright?" Saber said, striding forward. But then there was a flash, and the figure reappeared. It faced Saber, and seemed to put a hand to its cheek.

"Aha, so _you_ are the other intruder... Let's see now... you're Saber, are you not?"

"Indeed." Excalibur flashes, and the shadow fell again.

And then it returned.

"Now that was rude," said the shadow. "Now before you try that again, my scrumptious darling, know that no force can destroy me. I exist for as long as this [Castle] exists. And the [Castle] will exist for as long as its Master is alive, which means that lovely tramp behind you."

Shirou glanced at Rider, who looked quite shell-shocked. "Wh-what are you-"

"Oh, don't play dumb, m'dear. Well, you _are_ stupid, but you knew perfectly well that this was going to happen. After all, _you_ gave birth to this Castle, and for as long as you're alive, it shall continue to persist-along with the shadows that dwell within it. The things which you absolutely refuse to acknowledge, after forcing yourself into this ridiculous container. A half-baked Rider? Please spare me. You lock us away in the basement of the castle while you play at being the Castle mistress, all the while yearning for an idiotic love story that you've no business with."

"Be silent!" Saber thundered. She raised Excalibur. "If indeed you are a wraith, then begone. I will strike you down for however long it takes if it means silencing you."

"That does sound amusing. However-" She snapped her fingers, and the ground bent around Saber, like an alligator snapping its jaws shut. Spikes appeared, exactly as an alligator's maw, and they bore the same purpose as that predator. Shirou cried out, a warning he knew might be too late.

And yet Saber was not a Heroic Spirit in name only. Without even dropping her sword, she held the jaws back, like Samson at the idolatrous temple, and with barely a grunt, shattered the trap. Then, to underline her point, she dispelled the shade again with a flick of her sword.

"...Oh." The shade reappeared, looking quite surprised. "I see. You are a high-class Servant, unlike this other one who was snared. That is troubling."

"Disappear!"

"I will not," it said. "Well, more like, I _cannot_. As I'd said, I cannot be evicted, for I am tied to the Castle itself. For as long as Rider exists, I cannot be slain."

"Is this your Noble Phantasm?" she asked the whimpering woman to her right. "Dispel it. I tire of this claptrap."

"I-I can't-!" she bleated. "I don't have control!"

"That's exactly right!" the shadow says, smirking. "I-"

"I said shut it." The shadow disappeared again. Saber lowered her sword. "Talk, you mumbling buffoon."

"I-I don't kn-know how she did it! But this Castle, that was supposed to be mine, was taken away! By that bitch!" his Servant shouted up at the ceiling.

The disembodied voice replied. "Ah, and that is the sweet irony of it! Have you not yet realized this, magus?" The shadow had obviously had enough of being eviscerated by Saber and chose to speak like this instead. "Although I have taken control of this Castle, it is still 'hers'. And the upkeep for maintaining this Castle is still 'hers' to manage. Now the cost to keep this active was never a problem before, as this place is suited for maintaining a Noble Phantasm for a long time.

"But then you contracted with her, taking her as your Servant. And is that not the most amusing thing? For in taking her, you are now providing mana for the Castle yourself! _You,_ more than I, are what's keeping this Castle alive!" She laughed again, an infernal cackle that reverberated through the walls.

"And now I only need to be patient. I can see that you're on your last ropes-that is good. You cannot kill me, but I certainly can outlast you. You will die; then I shall capture your lovely little Servants one by one, and subject them to the sweetest of painful pleasures. Oh, what a thrill it'll be-we shall make a party of it!"

"What're you talking about? Speak sense!" he shouted.

"Oh, just ask your little Rider that. You've a little more time left, I do believe. Ask her the truth that she likes to hide within these decrepit dungeons, of the bodies that now lie hanging around you. These are not all mine handiwork; she loves to make sport of magi too."

"What is she saying?" Saber demanded. "Answer, or so help me: though you be a fellow Servant, I will _cut you down!_ "

"Saber, stop!" Shirou said. Saber turned, her eyes blazing, but he shook his head. He looked up at the ceiling. "Oi. You. If what you say is true then this stalemate will indeed be a painful one to experience. And I am already tired, and my body cannot take it anymore. Come back please, and let us discuss terms: I wish to surrender, yes-to trade my life for my Servants'."

"Shirou!"

"What the hell are you saying?" Rider shouted shrilly.

"Be silent," he said, "In the name of these Command Spells. Thirdly, Saber, you are not to attack the majordomo, for whatever reason."

The two were surprised when they found that they could not speak, under the powerful compulsion of the Command Seals he'd expended. Saber in particular looked wrathful, as if she would strike him down.

"Come then, let us speak," he continued, rising painfully to his feet. "I have restrained my dog, now please, come and help. I only wish to live."

The shadow reappeared, seemingly amused. "What's this then? A _man_ , giving up that easily, after putting up such a nuisance? Oh, I surely would not have believed it, but..." She approached Saber, who could only back off as she attempted to touch her face. "Hohoh... I do love the fire in this one. I cannot help but think it should be quite divine to break her into a pet instead of... well I'll leave that for later. Now, old man, you wish to parlay? Why the change of heart?"

"Did you not hear me?" Shirou replied. "I beg on my knees to be free from this Castle, indeed from this 'room'! I have no desire to risk my life any further! Grant me safe passage, and I shall relinquish my Servants to your care. That is all."

"Fufu... I see... Men _are_ cowards, at heart. Take away their power, all the advantages they prize so deeply in their rotten brains, and they are as much collared beasts as anything. Do you see this idiot girl? Here is your 'prince'. Behold his true self, deprived of the trappings of his pretensions.

"Very well, you foolish oaf. I shall indeed be taking your Servants." Quick as lightning she produced a small dagger, with a curved, wicked edge, then with the same speed, rushed forward to stab him in the gut. He grunted. "By my own hands. No negotiations. No trades. I thank you for your sincerity. But now it is time to die, and fall into the darkness with the knowledge of your own incompetence."

"I-I thought that-" Shirou gasped, then closed his eyes.

"You thought what? That I would show mercy? That I would ever change my mind? Who do you think I am, pathetic magus? Whoever you were outside these walls-it does not matter! Within Csetje Castle, _I_ am supreme! I am forever its ruler!"

"No..." Shirou said, feeling blood in his throat. "I only thought-

"That you were much smarter than that."

A dagger flashed in his hand, its blade jagged and shaped like a thunderbolt. A shape he had seen in his youth-carried by a shadowy figure almost like this one. His mind had Traced it, and only later had he discovered its true worth.

Rule Breaker. A blade that could shatter magecraft.

He called upon its name, and then stabbed it. The blade bit deep before the majordomo could react. The shadow screamed, its shadows fleeing from its form like ink from a page under water. In time he saw its true form beneath: a pale woman, white of hair, its beautiful face contorted into fear and agony.

"Gggkkkraaa!" Its head twitched, like a bug trapped, dying. "You- You- You-"

"Heh." He smiled. "So you're nothing more than a bitch. I'm glad it worked." He stabbed the dagger even further, as the woman's convulsions intensified. Though he would not call himself a sadist, he could admit to feeling some satisfaction at the agony on the majordomo's face.

It had been a stretch to assume the majordomo's nature, after only a few moments of studying it. He had taken the gamble, and had Projected Rule Breaker instead of any of a number of other weapons.

Then she clutched at his shoulders, peering deep into his eyes with her own. "Gyahahahaha! AmUSinG! AMuse! Ing! The! Castle! Is yours..! BUT! WARE! MAGUS! WARE! The! Bitch! THE! BITCH! She! Will lead... You... to ruin..." It began to fade out, as of a Servant going into astral form. "Your Servant... She will..." Her voice disappeared into the emptiness, like a whisper in the wind. Rule Breaker, having accomplished its purpose, clattered to the ground, before it took bid farewell.

His body collapsed heavily onto the ground. The blade had disappeared from his gut, but the wound was still there, and it hurt something fierce. He clutched at it, before remembering something and holding out his hand. "I revoke the Command to silence you, Saber, Rider. Come."

Saber took a deep breath. "I should be yelling at you, but that was a well-executed plan, Shirou. But what did that accomplish?"

"Eh? No way, no way!" Rider said, looking around her. "The Castle! I can feel it! It's mine again!" She laughed. "Oh, my prince, I knew you would not let us down!"

Saber looked from her, to him. She raised a brow. "I believe introductions are in order..?"

He pointed from one to the other in rapid-fire fashion. "Saber, Rider. Rider, Saber. Be nice, you're both members of royalty."

Rider curtsied. "A pleasure to meet you, good knight. I pray you can protect me and my prince well."

"This King shall deign to humor you, lowly one," Saber replied haughtily. "I greet you. Also: stay out of my way."

"What? A King?" Rider gaped, before smirking and puffing out her chest. "Ahh yes, a jest. It is a good one, Saber. I believe I shall name you a jester of the Court."

Saber rolled her eyes, and turned away from the other Servant as if she had no time for that. "We need to see to your wound, Master."

"Nah, I'm fine," he said-though the pain was indeed troubling, and he knew gut wounds were indeed bad news. "I'll just be needing the jewel, back, please Rider. I need it to heal Louise."

"Louise? Worry about yourself first!" Saber said.

"I will," said Shirou, through pained gasps. "Don't worry Saber. I won't be dying anytime soon. But I believe Louise will need aid more."

"I'm with Saber on this," Rider said. "Why should we raise our hands in aid for some peasant?" Upon seeing the look on his face, she flinched and reluctantly stepped forward to give him the jewel.

He pressed his mana into it and ran its glowing surface over Louise's cold body. "For now, I will not ask why Louise was trapped in _this_ particular part of the Castle, Rider, nor less why there was even a room like this in the first place." He glanced up at Rider, who avoided his eyes, and fidgeted with her gown. "I am sure there is a story there, and I will be glad to hear it, some other time. Anyway, I am grateful for your aid back there-you made this all possible."

"Th-thank you, my prince," she said, looking like she didn't know what to do with such praise.

"She's got serious wounds," Shirou said gravely, peering at the mess under her bloody clothes. "I am grateful yet again to Rin, for giving us this, though she won't know it." He looked up at his two Servants. "I've done all I can."

"Shirou, is there something wrong with your arm?"

"That, and my leg, I'm afraid." Shirou explained it all to Saber. "This is why I had hoped you would help carry Louise."

"I shall need to refuse," Saber said. "There may yet be enemies about, and I shall need to be ready for battle anytime to compensate for your current weakness. I am at least heartened to feel our connection has returned, Shirou. You had me worried there for a moment."

"What do you mean?" And then Saber explained that there had been a momentary disruption in their Master-Servant mana connection when he'd been dragged inside the castle. Shirou glanced at Rider, a slight suggestion in his mind forming.

"Perhaps that is easily explained-though I am a magus of no import." He indicated Rider, and the two of them looked at the fidgeting lady. "This whole Castle was built as her Noble Phantasm. Perhaps there are rules to it that cloud the operation of a Command Seal, once one is inside. A clever and devilish trap, especially for one's foes. I believe that rule may have been bypassed, once I'd contracted her as my Servant. Or not; I am not sure, for I am not a real magus.

"Regardless, the real issue before us is leaving this room as soon as we can. Rin's pendant has healed Louise' wounds, and yet I believe she will still require more aid."

"We must leave this 'room' then," Saber said.

"You can take her to the master bedroom upstairs, my prince," Rider said.

Shirou blinked. "No... oh, I do appreciate it, Rider, but we do need to leave."

"Leave?"

"Go back home. We shan't stay here forever."

She gasped. "But I thought we were to st-stay here...?"

"What kind of foolishness are you trying to say now?" Saber asked.

Rider stamped her feet. "But my prince promised that he'd be with me forever..!"

 _Had he really promised it?_ He couldn't quite recall over the roar of battle that was so prominent in his memories. But he only latched on to the important part.

"I did promise that you'd be with me, Rider. And we are going together. Everyone."

She pressed her hands together, though her face looked conflicted. "I-I see. Well in that case..."

Shirou strapped Rin's jewel to his wound, then took a breath. He was literally running on fumes, and there was no mana source in sight. Frankly he didn't know how he hadn't already collapsed, what with him providing mana for three Servants now.

"Place your hands on me," he announced, crouching down to hook his only mobile arm behind Louise's neck. A strong, gauntleted hand clamped over his left, and a warm, long-nailed hand was on his right. The latter trembled faintly.

Shirou exhaled. He gathered all his mana, and Moved. He was gratified to feel his body slipping through space.

* * *

He opened his eyes and saw that they were at the familiar entrance room. "We're back," he said with a puff, finally able to relax the tension in his body. "Good... Very good..."

"Whoa there."

"Bob!"

He opened his eyes, and saw Rin there, with Archer behind her. Then, there was a surprise, in that the scarred, leonine Kairi Shishigou was there as well, along with the rude blonde that was his Servant.

Kairi whistled, his hand on his chin. "Now that right there's so anticlimactic."

"Wha-how-why-" Rin's face went through a dozen expressions, one after another. "-You're here! That means..!" Then her brows furrowed, and she said, "Archer!"

The next moment, there came the sound of clashing steel.

"Wha-" Shirou could not believe what he was seeing.

Archer had drawn its twin crescent swords, and seemed to have been poised to strike Shishigou. In the blonde's place, then, was a figure in full knightly plate, its sword clashing against the twinned blades.

"Oi! What's the meaning of this, shitty magus!" Shishigou's Servant roared.

"Sign a geas contract, Shishigou. Now!" Rin said.

"Have you gone daft, girl?" Kairi shouted. "Is that any way to treat the only person who signed up to help you?"

"Cease your resistance and just sign the contract!" Rin cried. "I shan't have you blabbing about Bob's secrets to the world. I only came to you because I was desperate and needed your aid-but now that Bob's returned, that's become moot. So please just sign the damned contract!"

"Bloody hell, you're a madwoman, Tohsaka!" said Kairi, who drew a sawed-off shotgun. "I ain't signing no damned contract!"

"Have it your way, then!" Rin said, displaying her Command Seals on her hand. "I compel the chains that bind thy reason: Archer, subdue Kairi Shishigou!"

The red-clad man growled, and after a jerk of its head, several blades appeared and floated all over the air above Kairi, their tips pointed right at him.

"Graagh!"

Kairi's Saber disengaged, as the floating swords shot down like arrows launched. In the next moment, Saber had deflected them all with a wildly flailing circular sweep.

Then Rin whispered something, flinging some sort of gem fragments up in the air. Then they became bright balls of light, after which they shot forward like a hail of bullets at Kairi and his Servant.

Yet the Saber had charged forward like a bull, the magic orbs blasting, ineffectual, against its armor. In less time than one would take to draw breath, it had reached Rin's position, but before its blade could strike, Archer took Rin and leaped away.

"Stop! Seriously stop! I don't even know what the hell's going on!" said Shirou, watching the situation deteriorate from bad to worse to outright chaotic.

Then, a crack came slithering through the floor below him, and all hell broke loose.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says:**

 **As some of my old readers know, I absolutely hate writing up my version of characters in a work that's still ongoing. Basically, if an Elizabeth (Rider) shows up in the fluff, I might just kill off this character out of frustration. (jk lol)**

 **Tentative Rider Skills:**

 **Riding - Rank E**

 **Territory Creation - Rank B**

 **Torture Techniques - Rank A**

 **Noble Phantasm - ?**

 **Anyways, I managed to keep my promise: this was one whole chapter that had to be divided into three. The next one's probably coming after the new years swings by and I'll be sure to get it done. That chapter, or the one right after it, will conclude the first "arc" of the story.**

 **Hope you enjoyed, thank you!**


	14. Explode and The Life of the Party 2

(((Chapter 13)))

Interlude

"So why are you the one going out of your way for this? I thought you would want to gallivant with the older students at the Shakespeare district."

"Because Flat disappeared again, the bastard," Shinji grumbled. He shifted the box in his hands. The thing was heavier than he anticipated, and so he had to struggle to not look weak and just drop everything right in front of Leo Harway. There were several tinkling sounds coming from within, which reminded him of Professor Kiara's smiling reminder that the things inside were extremely fragile and quite expensive as a result. "Goddamnit! What the hell is inside this thing?"

"Need a hand, old boy?" Leo asked.

"Gununu..! No! I got it!" Shinji swayed, nearly plowing towards a trio of students.

"This wouldn't be a problem if you'd summoned your Servant already," Leo observed.

"Ugh, like you can talk, Harway. Your Servant's practically nonexistent the way it is."

"Please don't say that of my Servant," Leo said frostily. "That is quite unworthy of you, sir."

"Then get off my case already, fuck," Shinji said under his breath. "Where's this Waver guy's room again? And why the hell is it in the top fucking floor?"

"That floor of the school's reserved for chambers with heavy-duty machines, as you should know," said Leo. He spread his arms wide to indicate the rooms they were walking past. "We own and operate half of the machines there. There're tools for psychokinetipositronic teleometry, Command Seal research modules, thaumaturgical matrix forms-"

"Oi oi, I don't need to hear everything," Shinji said.

Leo shrugged.

They arrived at the designated room. Inside, there was a small antechamber that doubled as some sort of office, divided into two rooms. Shinji walked over to an unused desk and dumped the box on top of it.

He stretched and groaned, the muscles on his arms trembling from the work. "Well that's that," he muttered. "Wait, what the hell are you doing?"

His blonde companion had gone ahead to the door leading further inward, and was just about to enter through it. "I'm going in," Leo said.

"We don't need to!" Shinji exclaimed. "Well, _I_ don't need to. The Professor only told me to drop it off, nothing more." He pointed. "And there's a sign there, saying 'Don't come in unless you're an authorized person', you dolt! Are you really just going to break a rule like that?"

"But I've always been curious about Mr. Velvet's machine. Aren't you?"

"Not in the slightest," Shinji said, with a roll of his eyes. He blinked. "... _And_ he just goes on in, that idiot!" As if compelled by a mysterious, impulsive force of idiocy, he dashed after his sometime friend and sometime snobbish companion.

He stopped, his head slowly tilting up as his bewildered eyes slowly took in the sight of the largest assembly of machinery he had ever seen.

The door behind them led to a small platform that overlooked a greatly spaced chamber below. A set of narrow stairs, fit only for one to walk without falling, led down a steep pathway towards the bottom, where much of the machinery began.

It was difficult for Shinji to describe what exactly he was seeing; like a toddler being shown the inside of a clock's innards. Drums of brass slammed against each other, cylinders of tin and steel appeared and disappeared behind great swivelling golden fans with audible, pneumatic hisses. Small hammers bounced against thin, rotating rods in repeating patterns, creating a repetitive tinkling sound that warbled from all corners of the room. He had no idea where the mechanism of movement began, nor where it ended.

He was able to observe distinct features of the machine that stood out from the hubbub. Large golden objects, shaped into the manner of a sun, flitted all over the dome-shaped surface of the machine above them in rapid fashion. There were glass tubes suspended from the ceiling where mercury-like fluids floated within, morphing and reshaping randomly. On the far wall, many pendulums swung along different rates, producing a dizzying effect that made him tear his eyes away.

This was the ante-morphic cartographic corrigifier, which was a device very valuable to the City. It was the first ever machine that was able to discover the exact location of the "landmark rooms" within the Labyrinth. Such rooms were the only constants that never changed, despite the Labyrinth's inherently chaotic nature. With the device, the City's magi could plot out routes that would avoid teleporting into those landmark rooms at a 99% success rate. The rooms they would pass would still be randomly chosen, but at least they would be almost assured that they would not visit a place like, say, Csetje Castle, and be doomed forever.

"Well, of course, it is impressive," Leo remarked in a hushed voice, beside him. "But I should still prefer to give the vote to Mr. Babbage's great computational counter-rotational steamwork device. Have you ever seen it?"

"No."

"But this ranks a close second, far more than anything my company's made. Mr. Velvet should congratulate himself. It is only a shame my father could not see his genius before-"

"So you'd own another trophy?"

Leo made a small smile. "We offer the fruits of our research to the City, is that not enough?"

Shinji was about to make another barbed rebuttal when a voice came from below, loud enough to be heard over the great clanking and whirring all around them.

"Hey! Are you supposed to be here?"

At the bottom of the stairs below stood a small figure. Even from afar they could tell from its strange attire and manner that it was a Servant. It looked like a fresh-faced youth, clad in warrior's leather gear. It bore a sword, which it now pointed at them. Shinji blinked, and shook his head. For a moment there he'd seemed mesmerized by the kid's face, even when he realized a second later that it was a boy.

Answering the question, Leo said confidently, "Yes, we were tasked to deliver something for Mr. Velvet's use."

"Oh really?" the Servant said, blinking. "Hey Master! Delivery for you!"

They followed the Servant's gaze towards the furthest part of the room, where the pendulums were. At the bottom, sitting down, was a figure clad in the student robes of their alma mater.

Shinji vaguely recalled that while Waver Velvet was one of those rare geniuses gifted a special station by virtue of his unique accomplishments-like his sister, damn her-he was still considered a student in the Academy. He'd refused all offers of apprenticeships, though there were rumors that it was the other way around: that his brilliant invention had soured any potential magi who was willing to take him on.

"Hm? Ah, are they here with the replacement parts? Okay, okay. Just send them off for me, wouldja, Rider?" Shinji heard him yawn. "I'll install them tomorrow."

"If you don't mind, sir Rider," Leo said. "Could we have permission to talk to Mr. Velvet? We're quite curious about some aspects of his research."

The Servant stared at them, before crossing its arms. "Now why should the Master entertain you two? I know your kind, magi. You would wish to undermine my Master or his work, is that it?"

"Oh no, no. We have no quarrel with Mr. Velvet, I can assure you. I am Leo of the Harway family, and my Servant is a Caster type. Be assured; we gain nothing from challenging your Master, Rider. And Shinji here doesn't even have a Servant yet."

"Harway! You..!" Shinji seethed at the casual way he just blurted out that information.

The Servant scratched its head. "My apologies gentlemen, but I still don't see the point of it all. Curiosity's well and good, but-"

"Are they still there, Rider?" Waver asked from ahead.

"Yes they are, Master."

Waver's distant figure seemed to rise from the ground and approach them slowly. Then Shinji saw that he was actually sitting on a round flotational device-more advanced and expensive than the ones used by common carriages.

Waver Velvet was a young man, perhaps just a bit older than themselves. His depiction of youth seemed deceptive, as he exuded the gruff, aloof aura of a much older magus, like those who had become fully immersed in their research. In that, Waver Velvet seemed not too dissimilar to his Servant below, who wore the aura of a warrior like a cloak, despite his looks.

"Ah, so it is you Lord Harway. And you too, you are the grandson of the celebrated Matou Zouken, are you not? What can I do for you?" Shinji blinked at being recognized.

"Well, we were rather admiring your splendid machine, my friend and I, and we then marveled at how an average magus could have achieved such noble heights, using only his own resources and intelligence. It's rather impressive!"

For a moment, time froze. Shinji's head could not wrap around the fact that the blond idiot had just gone and insulted the man before them. Even Waver Velvet himself looked taken aback, and he almost looked like Flat whenever that one was caught flat-footed by a question from Professor Kiara.

 _This idiot_..! Shinji thought. Well, everything Leo said were certainly his own thoughts as well, but he'd be a fool if he mouthed it off right to the guy's fucking face.

Then Waver grinned and laughed. "Indeed, indeed, I have often wondered at that myself. It is only a testament to my unbridled ingenuity and 'never-give-up' attitude that I have come so far despite being not descended from a family like you two, or having not been apprenticed at a young age to a famous magus. Together, those two qualities have led me to this very room, on this very moment. Well, that and the sizable startup loan, but don't tell anyone I said that," Waver chortled again, as if he were relating a bad in-joke at a party.

Shinji caught Leo's eye, as the latter wagged his brows in triumph. Once again Shinji was blown away by the blond's sheer knack for sniffing out a quality in someone he met, and then exploiting it ruthlessly for his own ends. It was a remarkable trademark that won the blond fame and recognition, though he made few friends.

"I have heard that you fashioned your own Mystic Code from scrap, Mr. Harway. Even found a way to modify your family Crest, to better interface with it. Pray tell, how was that experience?"

"Very arduous," Leo said succinctly. _Yeah right_ , Shinji thought. _You did hard work, but also had your family to back you up._

Waver floated upwards, spreading his arms wide as if to take in the whole space. "This whole machine operates in a similar manner. There is a long, arduous process that connects the power source of amygdallic octupletine crystals, to the very end, where the vibrations of the amplified telluria are captured by the cartographic tracers. There are five hundred thousand or so components at work here, and were it not for the automata piecing it all together at the start, I'd probably go mad assembling them from scratch. Together these five hundred thousand form the simple latticework that enables us to peer into the bizarre structure of the Labyrinth."

"So your device makes little in the way of errors?" said Leo. Shinji could tell he had already shifted into an analytical mindset.

"You see those sun-shaped discs moving above there? They're moving slowly now, but on some days they move rapidly, so much that they reach speeds faster than a bullet. They're observational lenses that track the movement of the landmarks through the whole Labyrinth. Think of them as driftwood on the surface of water."

"And how were you able to track their precise coordinates?"

"Well that... is a trade secret," Waver said with a small smile. "If you're really interested you could try to bribe the Overseer's office-as they have the schematics in the event of my untimely death."

Leo laughed politely. Shinji considered the possibility-but the Overseer's office, headed by the inscrutable non-magus Fujimura Taiga, was immune to corruption. The Grail actually made it so. "Are you not working on improvements to the observation abilities? Make it so we can map out the whole Labyrinth?"

Waver nodded. "Always. On the surface it would seem that formulating the necessary computations to create predictive simulations would take an infinite number of years, but I have it on good authority that a method might be possible in the near-future, from the forges of Babbage and his friends no less. I look forward to that; but I'm also trying hard on my own terms."

"I see. Well, this has certainly been informative, Mr. Velvet. Once again, on behalf of my company, I salute you. You have more than earned the accolades of your peers."

"Now can we go?" Shinji muttered. He was impatient to go home, to inform his grandfather he was ready to summon his Servant.

A rumble shook the room, rocking the floor such that they nearly fell over. "What was that?" Shinji exclaimed, looking around. "The machine?"

"Rider?" asked Waver, glancing at his Servant down on the bottom. "Something wrong?"

"It is a strong quake, Master," Rider replied. "It almost makes me think it's an earthquake, but you've told me the City is immune to all of nature's fury, so that has made me wonder."

"Mr. Velvet!" Leo shouted, waving and pointing towards the great machine. "I believe it's coming from your device!"

Before Shinji could collect himself, loud footsteps echoed from behind. A contingent of black-clad figures, whom he recognized by their uniform to be the Enforcers from the Overseer's office, marched in.

"Waver Velvet!" someone in their number shouted. "There has been an incident in the Labyrinth. Please report your findings!"

"How can this be..?" Waver could be heard to say, as he floated slowly upward, his gaze on his machine. "The error... It's in Csetje? But what's-" The sun-shaped disc he stared at, once lazily moving along the surface, now went practically haywire, their rapid movements entirely too fast for the eyes to comprehend. Then the other discs began to move in much the same way.

Sparks started flying as screeching sounds steadily made themselves apparent, increasing in number like a bunch of screaming birds. The discs collided with each other in their frenzy, their motions now unhinged from their normal operation. The whole machine seemed on the verge of breaking itself from the inside, as parts of the machinery began breaking off like so many lethal stalactites.

"Master, watch it, it's dangerous!"

"Look out!" someone shouted, as, with an almighty shriek, accompanied by a loud bang, several of the discs shattered, their pieces flying everywhere-including the small platform.

Shinji had a vision of several golden shards flying towards him before someone pushed him aside, the motion knocking him unconscious.

* * *

Interlude

During the first few moments of the fight, Rin had fought fiercely, had used all the cunning she could muster to at least disable Kairi Shishigou before his troublesome Servant could intervene.

But her plans came to naught, as her plans usually did, and she had to improvise: knowing that her Servant would not last long against a Saber of that caliber.

She was ready to improvise, and was even equipped for any sort of betrayal from a necromancer of Shishigou's skills. Even with the Servant's superior speed, Archer and his artificial Madness Enhancement would have theoretically allowed her to keep a healthy distance while draining Shishigou's mana reserves, which should be low. It would have taken a big, unnaturally different trump card for the necromancer to even become a threat.

That was when the whole room quite literally exploded. A storm of energy had burst from the floor, from the ceiling, even from the very walls, creating pockets, cracks, then rifts that deformed and split apart the castle interior. She gave thanks to Archer for his quick thinking in grabbing hold of her, though he ended up dropping her as the enemy Saber drew near. The impromptu battlefield quickly disappeared with the roar of thunder.

Then, the cracked pieces started to float, as if they would heed gravity no longer. A storm of white, colorless energy began to stream through the pieces, accompanied by a booming wind-like force that scattered the pieces into all four directions. Then it was all she could do to keep a hold of the large boulder she was attached to, where it felt like she would rip her fingers out from holding on. Rin had lost sight of Archer then, though she could hear him fighting in the distance, perhaps intervening against Saber while she could not fight, as she merely struggled to keep from being crushed between two floating rocks. She clung on, like a lizard clinging to a rock being tossed in a stormy sea, all thoughts of bringing Shishigou under the geas forgotten.

She looked for someone to blame, as the disaster unfolded: Bob, for disappearing into the Labyrinth without a trace and without telling anyone, herself for succumbing to needless worry and the desperate need to keep Bob for herself, or Kairi Shishigou for refusing to sign the geas contract that would silence his knowledge of Bob's capabilities. As it was, all she could do was utter a loud screech in the back of her throat, frustration almost choking her to death.

In fact, what even was this situation? She could sense that the energy surrounding her was like the wild mana that permeated the ley-line fonts, but it was her first time seeing such quantity, and such violence. She could tap into the energy to fuel her magecraft, true, but the unstable environment was itself a warning that battle would be foolhardy.

So realizing, she tried to crane her neck and call out for Archer. This was the only option; she only had one Command Spell left. She would never use that up, not even if she were to die. That was relinquishing her role as True Master.

"Archer!" she shouted, hoping she could be heard over the surrounding noise; from the pieces crunching into each other and the energy's wild howling. "Come back-oh, whoaaa!"

Her boulder had collided sharply with another, and that let her go of it, and she floated in space. Panicking, she flailed her limbs, like she were floundering in water, before she remembered she was a magus. Crushing a jewel, she directed a burst of magic behind her, she managed to return to where she was. Enchanting her fingers to stick to the rock, she forced herself to turn around, to try to see where the hell Archer was.

"Archer!" she barked. "Please come back!" She had to escape; return to the entrance. But not without Archer. The Servant she could conceivably have left behind, but that meant Reviving him again, and after he'd already been killed just recently. Her financial prospects were dire enough and then she'd even hired that smug swindler Shishigou.

"This is a fine little mess, eh, Tohsaka?" came a voice from beside her.

"Shishigou!"

The leonine man was stranded on another asteroid that had come near, clinging in the same matter as her. Rin tried to move to a better position, so she could attack or defend as needed, but it was challenging in the ever-shifting chaos.

"So? Had time to get your head cooled?" asked the man, as if he were inquiring about Rin's health.

"I've no real quarrel with you, I can assure you. I just-"

"You just wanted to protect your interests," said Kairi. "Y'know, I get it, I totally do. Man with a thousand Command Seals show up like that, what's a gal to do? And then you up and lose them-"

"Are you seriously carrying on a monologue in the middle of this situation?" Rin cried. "We need to get out of here! This event is clearly unnatural!" As she spoke, a rain of swords flew overhead, an attack she recognized to be her Archer's.

Then, there was a muffled shout in the distance, followed by a booming wave of pale crimson energy that struck a little too close to their position. Rin could see the sheer raw power of Saber's strike.

"...Damn she's already going all out. Ahem. Well, I agree, on both counts, Ms. Tohsaka. Ideally I need to escape to the entrance, but that's a very hard thing to do while your Servant's battling mine."

"I seriously don't care anymore," Rin said, bracing as something like an explosion sounded in the distance. Several impacts thudded onto her little piece of floating rock, and she wondered what that was. "Your Servant started this, Shishigou! Help me end the battle! This can't go on for much longer!"

"When she gets riled up like that, it's hard to rein her in," said Kairi. "In a way, she's almost like a Berserker."

"Oh for the love of-" Rin rolled her eyes. "Use your Command Seal!"

"...I only have the one, sorry."

* * *

Interlude

The two massive Knights never once moved as Sakura passed by them. Flanking the only entrance inside the building, they were as the living relics they represented: old, dusty, only fit for display.

She thus stood before the massive doors of the entrance. A small mechanical familiar jerked to life, pointing its feeble glass eye at her and quizzing her with bird-like chirps.

"Sakura Matou," she said. And that was all that was needed.

The small doors wheezed upward, allowing Sakura entry into the Administrative Complex. It was a massive building that dominated at the heart of the City. It had the unique feature of an odd clock tower at the top, containing a bell that never rung.

The halls within contained no magi in sight, only the odd Servant who nodded silently as she passed, combat homonculi with sterile eyes, automatons of many shapes and models (most stamped with the strict insignia of Babbage & Co.) with weapons primed, and Phantasmal creatures from the labyrinth, their minds and bodies chained by Magecraft.

"Ah, there you are. I'd been waiting patiently for you."

Sakura bowed to the stern-looking man with graying, wavy hair who waited for her as she rounded the corner. "Grandfather."

It was said that Matou Zouken never smiled, not even when many of his peers still lived. He was an ardent practitioner of his Craft, well respected among the magi of the City. And yet he had quite a few peculiarities: he'd taken no Servant for his own, had never used the Labyrinth for his purposes, and had existed for hundreds of years without having done anything noteworthy. It was an easy rumor that Zouken had had a different name, and had known one of the Founders, or that he was even one of them, the last one, silently watching over the city through the long years. He held no position among those who would consider themselves the premier of magi. Yet they listened when he spoke, though he spoke little, if at all.

To Sakura, she was nothing but her grandfather, and the man who had raised her to be the magus she had become.

Zouken appraised her for a moment or two before he nodded and said, "How was your visit?"

"She was still not there when I called," Sakura said, grimacing.

Zouken tapped his ornate, oak cane and motioned for them to walk. Even as the cane hobbled his footprints, he still seemed much taller and intimidating than herself. "Such disrespect is to be expected. That Tohsaka has not the grace or refinement of her father, nor even all the forebears before her."

"I regret to say that I was not able to come home and inform uncle."

"I've sent him a wire. He will understand."

It was a roundabout way of saying that her uncle, Kariya, and to a lesser extent, her brother Shinji, figured less than a speck of dust when it came to a crisis. They would never be allowed access inside the formidable Complex for as long as they lived, not even should the whole City collapse around them. The Complex was the magi's last vain hope, and everyone who did not merit entry was irrelevant.

Only the venerable, the supremely talented, the most cunning: in all, the vilest, most cold-blooded magi were given entry. It did not matter if one had a powerful Servant, one needed to have proven that they were magi ready to trample on the lives of thousands to be granted safe passage to this last bastion. Survival mattered most: if an impossible situation arose, it was thought better to rely on the proven brilliance of the few, than the unfettered incompetence of the masses.

It was the reason why Emiya Kiritsugu was not invited, despite his enormous influence in the city. He was certainly cunning, and had finagled a contract with a powerful Servant, but his value as a magus was middling at best. Even being a True Master did not figure in it. Though they were said to be the pillars of this City, True Masters still needed to be considered worthy. It was even possible there were True Masters within the Complex now. At most, Emiya could only post two of his Knights at the entrance, as a symbolic gesture-or to let the Administration know he was aware of the snub, and did not care.

Sakura could never understand why she was chosen. She attributed it to her grandfather, a man she knew would never have involved himself in this type of charity. Certainly he'd never lifted a finger to extend an invitation to Uncle Kariya, or to Shinji. And of course, the man himself never admitted it when she'd asked, and pointed to her own "triumphs" as the merit the Administration was looking for in a magus.

"The situation is still unclear to me, grandfather," Sakura said, tilting her head in curiosity. "What exactly is going on?"

"It is also a blank state to me as well," he rumbled. "But news comes filtering to me on little wings, and it does not sound promising. The Labyrinth is convulsing, and no one knows why."

"Convulsing?" Sakura frowned, thinking on that peculiar wording. "That is..."

"No matter what happens out there, we are assured to be safe inside here," said Zouken. He snorted.

"Grandfather?"

He smiled crookedly. "Oh, it's nothing, my dear. Here we are. With you here, we are almost all assembled."

They'd come to a large, flat room, with luxurious chairs spaced evenly around a lower pit, like an antlion's trap. A holographic projection of the city floated there at the bottom, as several dim figures loitered about its base. When she stepped through, she felt a host of gazes swivel towards her, and she almost froze, like a deer among multiple headlights. But then her training came through, and she walked on while keeping on a placid face.

Zouken led her to one of the chairs.

"You can sit here. I shall need to move over there to sit." At her questioning look, he continued, "The rules stipulate that those who do not have a Servant, and those who do, must be clearly divided from each other. I belong to that group over there, and you, here. Do not fear: the demarcation is only a formality."

He patted her shoulder before moving away to the other side of the room.

There was an intense buzz of murmurs and whispers all around, as the magi assembled here sought to make sense of the sudden summons. Even Sakura was herself perplexed-having only looked forward to speaking with her estranged sister on that day, only to be directly faced with a crisis right after. There was no doubt that a summons to the Administrative Complex was a subtle evacuation order, only invoked during a time of emergency, and only happened a few times during the City's existence.

"Assassin."

"Yes, Sakura?" A small white rodent-like creature emerged from her pocket, and moved down her arm to sniff out over the room. Sakura patted the small creature on the head, and it made cat-like purrs as it scrunched up its eyes.

"I'm scared," Sakura whispered to her Servant. It reached out to grasp her fingers with its small paws.

"I am too. Let's be scared together, yes?"

The entrance door whizzed open. Sakura blinked at the sudden influx of light, and raised her brows as the two Grands, Lord Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi and Lord Darnic Prestone Yggdmillennia strode in, bickering. Two Servants accompanied them, bringing up the rear-the mysterious silent blonde with Kayneth, and the bearded gentlemanly figure, summoned by Darnic.

Lord Darnic was a man whom even her grandfather could spare a few words of grudging praise. But Lord Kayneth was uniquely more interesting, as he was one of the few who could possibly be the True Master of Ruler. On this matter, the man was as tight-lipped as his Servant. If he was a True Master as well as a Grand, then he was a magus to be greatly respected.

A loud, thumping noise echoed from the bottom. "Alright, alright, let's settle down, children," came a loud voice. It was of such a pitch that it silenced the magi, momentarily.

It was the Overseer, Fujimura Taiga, who was accompanied by a group of her subordinates, the dour priests and hierophants whom the Grail had empowered to control the magi. "We'll thank you for not inciting panic in the city," continued the woman. "And now we must see to the situation as it is presented to us."

"What of Waver Velvet's machine?" someone in the opposite gallery shouted. "Was that colossal money sink any use at all in predicting this?" Guffaws and snickers went up and down the room.

The Overseer glanced at the priest beside her, who leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Our Enforcers have been unable to get news from Waver Velvet, nor his Servant. I'm sure there're some circumstances there, but for the moment, we've had no news." A thick, harsh murmur went through the crowd. "This has the unfortunate effect of confirming for all of us that some deep shit's going down in the Labyrinth. No one can say what it is, yet, but let's not have that stop us from doing our jobs as _administrators_.

"Well then, if there are no other questions, I hope you all can cooperate to help weather this situation. The Harways report that they have sealed their clientele's entrances from the Labyrinth, and have further reported no casualties. Good! Those kids did a very good job.

"Well, I've got some of our folks locking down the other unsecured entrances. Please spare a moment's silence for the poor souls who ended up trapped inside..."

* * *

 _Other_

She does not know why it's happened. The whole world looks like it's gone to shit all at once. But she doesn't even care. Battle has come for her, and her blood sings for it. It's been a long time since she's felt this thrilled.

Conveniently, the surrounding's been blown apart by some magic shit. Much more convenient is the fact that mana now surrounds her, enveloping her, and she drinks on it, like a person once dying of thirst. The energy is far more than what her Master can give, and she intends to spend it well.

This Archer is an interesting sort. At first she thought it some parlor trick, some feint, to use swords against her, a Saber. Why should someone of an Archer class have to resort to that except to deceive? As the room broke apart around her, Saber pursued the Archer relentlessly, aiming to bridge the gap.

A storm of swords fell upon her like thunder, a hail of makeshift arrows. She dodges wildly, using the lack of gravity to propel herself far, but then she notices that each arrow melts like butter against her armor. Even standing against a barrage only ends up tickling, as the strange swords only end up sending vibrations through her armor.

She smiles to herself. Was this really the extent of that bitch's scheme? She'd heard the respect in her Master's voice when he spoke of the magus Rin Tohsaka, and yet all she can feel now is confusion. And contempt.

If she was so strong and wise, then what was this red Servant? A fluke?

She lands on a big slab of floating stone, and plants her boots against the smooth surface. "Hey Archer!" she shouts. "Your arrows suck! You've had your fun playing the Saber, now here, why don't I try being an Archer now?

"Clarent Blood Arthur!" Fed by the limitless mana, her blade pulses a crimson light and discharges a greatly colored wave of concentrated energy that whips through several floating chunks, obliterating them entirely. Saber cackles, then leaps up to float in the mana-rich air and repeats, "Clarent Blood Arthur! Clarent Blood Arthur!" sending out waves of energy in rapid succession. Her Noble Phantasm slices through the chaotic void like the claw of a titanic beast, and handily destroys everything it touches.

She can spot Archer fleeing from her onslaught. She launches another wave, then another, then another.

 _But it was then-_

-it was then that Archer deployed its next attack. Tapping into the infinite streams of energy with the eagerness of a child messing with its toys, Archer spreads his arms, and all around him are hundreds of specially-made swords, forged directly from his inner world. These he launches immediately, though not at Saber.

The blades stab into the floating pieces of debris, large and small. Chains then appeared that connected the hilt of a sword to another. Hundreds of chains now connect pairs of debris as far as the eye can see.

Then, a moment later, Archer snaps his fingers, and the chains contract, bringing the paired _chunks of debris together-_

-An almighty crunching noise echoed throughout the disintegrating vastness. It is so loud that Saber flinches. She makes to leap, but has to dodge the many hundred rocks that have appeared, bits and pieces of smaller debris flung out from where hundreds of bigger ones had been smashed together by Archer's artifice.

"Clarent Blood Arthur!" Again and again, she launches her Noble Phantasm, which cuts a path for her across the chaos. It is frustrating for her to find that she has lost Archer in all the mess.

It is then that she slams her back into a floating boulder.

"What." It hardly hurts, but it's a surprise. She hadn't seen that coming and-

WHAM!

-a passing boulder smashes into her helmet, the force like a rubber ball hitting her head. "Wha-"

The damned things are everywhere! She lashes out, sending five beams in different directions. She turns and heads for the nearest intact boulder, to reorient herself.

A whizzing sound reaches her ear, along with the prickling feeling at the back of her neck that warns her of an incoming attack.

She turns in midair, and swings at the arrow the bastard's launched. Yet for some reason, there's a whole bunch of explosive mana inside it, enough that she could actually feel its impact against her blade.

The resulting explosion knocks her backward, as she is engulfed in a cloud of dust. Saber waves her arms to blow away the distraction. She frowns. That had been stronger than its usual attacks.

So it _did_ have a trump card.

She feels another attack incoming, and she turns in the direction, spotting Archer slip away into the mass of debris just as the projectile sailed through the air. It looks like some sort of sword, for some reason, which makes her laugh.

She dashes over a series of floating rocks, only to find that the sword-arrow's turned in midair.

"Shit, it's homing? That's a cheat." Saber's figure makes a sharp turn, leading the arrow purposely through a thick set of obstacles. She smirks; sooner or later it's bound to hit something and explode.

She feels something behind her, and she turns just in time to see yet another sword-though this time it's just floating there. "When the hell-?" The bastard must have just left it there as a trap. A second later and she'd have bumped into it. Saber swims backward wildly, declining to detonate it on purpose until she was a distance away.

That was when she remembered there was another arrow pursuing her.

Unfortunately, it's too late to turn and strike. The arrow's tip has already tapped her armor.

The explosion propels her forward, much stronger than before-right into the other sword-arrow.

"Shi-" Saber's vision fills with light.

The two mana explosions in quick succession ignite the whole area in a flash, disintegrating a spherical area of debris handily.

Saber, spinning and reeling, crashes through several rocks before she rights herself and lands, a tad ungraciously, on her own feet. As the smoke clears, it is clear to see that the attacks had breached her armor; worse, parts of it had been outright obliterated, leaving her body a bloody, half-naked mess.

Yet still she grinned. "That's real funny, asshole." She threw away the tattered remnants of her gauntlet, which had become too frayed to be of use. Besides, she could reform her armor anytime, and with all this mana, it would be a cinch to-

Three sword-arrows come barreling in for her-each from impossible angles. She snorts, as she _raised Clarent above her head-_

-another explosion erupts. This is not to say that this is his limit, or that he knows he's won, yet Archer subconsciously lets his arms down. Nothing should have survived a series of Broken Phantasms in a row, unless there was some ability like Herakles.

And if that were the case, then no amount of mana in the world would let him beat them.

There is a burst of mana. He can sense it, as clear as the sun. He spots the source clearly enough; it is Saber, now barreling right for him with a speed it had never displayed before.

He's already retreating, three arrows all ready to deploy. Though unable to utter a word, he can nonetheless launch the arrows without a fuss.

The first shoots forward with the force of a cannon, and with the speed of a bullet. He watches Saber, her helmet rapidly disintegrating, smile and charge on without changing course, whereupon she bats the arrow aside, making it explode behind her.

The second arrow's already in flight, no less accurate than the one before, and yet he can sense it will be just as useless. He fires the third already, and now there are two in the air.

The second misses, the third connects, and there is another brilliant flash.

He lands on a rock and sighs. A long, drawn-out battle is a slog, particularly against superior Servants. A part of him can intuitively guess that this is a useless battle, and that protecting Rin should be the priority, and yet a voice in him urges him to fight, to kill.

Danger screams at him.

The next arrow's formed for but a second when he spins in place. Kanshou and Bakuya flash, the faithful twins parrying the sudden assault from behind. Flowing form and technique, against raw, brutal force.

 _And yet-_

-Clarent drives through Archer's side.

"Gotcha, you slippery bastard."

There is a hush, if it even was that; in this place that has turned wild and chaotic, the rumbling noise from all around never ceases. And yet for those two Servants, the fighting careens to a stop.

The masked Archer stares down at the wound on his side, as if surprised at its sudden appearance. Even Saber looks puzzled, as if wondering why they were just standing here. She has expected him to do anything else than that.

And then a sound comes.

"Hr..." Archer's shoulders shake. "Hr! Hrhrhrhrhrhr..."

It is hard to hear through the mask, but it's clear Archer is laughing. It sounds like the braying of a donkey.

"Pfft..!" Her face twisting, Saber also breaks into a booming chuckle. The absurdity of the situation has gotten to her.

The Servants just stand there, their laughter echoing into the far distance.

"Oiiii! Saber!"

"Archer! Archeeeer!"

The spell breaks, the laughter stops, and they hear the call of their respective Masters. And then they see the predicament.

The rocks upon which their Masters are clinging are steadily drifting towards a massive whirlpool of energy far in the distance.

"Now would be a good time, Mordred!"

"Archeeer!"

Clucking her tongue, Saber withdraws the sword and jumps. Right by her side, oblivious to its wound, is Archer, and they rocket forward as fast as they can towards their Masters, before it is too late.

* * *

Interlude

The formation of knights spread apart and flanked the way towards the carriage like guardians escorting royalty. Against this picture of solemn might, the pair of mother and daughter looked quite small and vulnerable.

Red eyes flashed between ivory locks as the mother turned back towards him. "Once again, this is entirely too much, Kiritsugu. There is no need for all this pomp. It's embarrassing."

"Iri..."

Her gaze was cold, implacable. "We talked about this, Kiritsugu. I won't have this argument with you again." The child looked up at its mother, perhaps wondering at her harsh tone, then squirmed to look back at him.

He stood speechless against that gaze. Before the awkward moment could stretch any further and expose him as a stuttering wreck, his Servant stepped forward behind him.

"Irisviel, it cannot be stressed enough that this is an emergency situation," Saber said, her blue eyes, usually so intense, now warm and pleading. "Please, for Illya's sake, allow my soldiers to escort you back to your home."

"I..." Irisviel Einzbern's steely demeanor faltered, then softened when she looked at his Servant. "Oh, very well. Come on then, Illya."

"Bye daddy! Saber! Bedi!"

"Goodbye," Emiya said, waving desperately, as if he were trying to match the child's enthusiasm.

"I shall see you again, young Illya," Sir Bedivere said.

"Be good now," Saber said.

"Mhm! See you again!"

The only other Servant in the group, who had pointedly been ignored by the young girl, sighed audibly. Bedivere chuckled, and patted the knight's shoulder. "Cheer up, sir. She'll warm up to you in time."

"At this point I am sure she is being deliberate," Sir Gawain said, gloomily. Then he jerked. "Oh, I do beg your pardon, Master Emiya. Please forgive my impudence. I mean no disrespect to the young lady."

Kiritsugu ignored the Servant's apology, and kept his eyes on the pair who were then heading inside the carriage. The two Knights Tristan and Lancelot would lead the escort party back, and were responsible for guarding Irisviel's aparment. He could do at least that much for his estranged family, and he was glad his Servant saw the need as well, even if it clashed with their vow to watch over the entire City.

He watched his wife and daughter's carriage leave, all the way until it disappeared beyond a far street corner. He closed his eyes, his fingers trembling from the effort of enduring his turbulent mental state. Then, as if overcoming some herculean trial in his mind, he opened his eyes, and he was once more Emiya Kiritsugu, True Master of Saber.

"Come, Saber," he said curtly, turning back towards the hotel.

"Yes. Sir Gawain, Sir Bedivere, I shall leave the final preparations to you."

"Yes, your Majesty."

"Yes, understood!"

He produced his cigarette pack, embossed with the faded symbol of the old von Einzbern house, then lit up one of the sticks there. He took a few drags, as he and Saber marched up to the room he rented in this hotel. He passed nervous magi who glanced hopefully at him and the Servant marching behind him, though he kept his words to himself.

They arrived at the rooms he'd reserved for himself, and found Maiya there waiting for them. The slender woman, his lifelong assistant and loyal companion, was attuning to several channels on the communication device. The level of multi-tasking was akin to writing on four different pieces of paper all at once, but Maiya was able to manage it.

Though it was the common belief that he had considerable influence through the city thanks to Saber and the Knights of the Round Table she'd summoned through the Wish of the Grail, he had less allies than he'd have liked. Magi took a dim view on his placing the lesser Knights all around, who acted as a pseudo-police force with questionable legality.

The mere fact that there were no codified rules in the city, only guidelines that the Overseer's office set down, meant that magi could not rightly complain about his Knights; just as he could not count on bringing any scoundrels within the City to justice on a higher court in turn. Always he would have to bring down the law, be the executioner if it were needed. Worse still, people died every day without anyone knowing, so injustice was just a normal thing.

As such, Kiritsugu had no allies, but he had people. His network of spies who had to be meticulously bribed, intimidated, or even enchanted under a geas to provide him with information from all quadrants of the City.

"The Administrative Complex has been sealed off," Maiya announced, without looking up. She steadily tapped on the keyboard of the device, as small beeping sounds and chirps filled the silence in the room. "We can confirm that Fujimura Taiga and her top people have entered it. It seems the Overseer's office has also been barricaded from within."

"What of Iri and Ilya?"

"...Sir Tristan has acknowledged that they have all been safely secured. He and Sir Lancelot will be standing by."

"Very good."

Saber walked off to the side, and exited out onto the balcony. After issuing some instructions to Maiya, Kiritsugu joined her.

"It is a troubling development," Saber announced, looking out over the city with worried eyes.

"Uh-huh." He took one deep, last drag before flicking the stub to the side. "I wanted to thank you... Saber. Nowadays it seems like you're the only one who can really talk to Iri-like, _really_ talk to her."

Something shifted in his Servant's expression, before she shook her head. "Would that I could respond by remarking on some of your decisions that you'd made already, Master, but you've made your bed, and you shall live with the outcome."

Kiritsugu grunted, unwilling to resurrect an argument that had already been taken out back and put out of its misery long ago.

"You do not know the nature of this crisis?" Saber asked, peering at the horizon as if she could visualize the chaotic Labyrinth with her eyes.

"We've always been sitting on a slumbering volcano, ever since we were born to this wretched City. I suppose it's only just woken, and we'll be reaping the consequences the Founders laid down."

"You do not fear to be consumed?"

Kiritsugu shrugged. "Fear's got nothing to do it. Fear the unknown, yes, but the unknown's still the unknown. It's hard to say 'stand your ground' or 'don't panic'. If we can't do fuck all about it then all we can do is lie down and prepare for the worst."

"Let us then hope this sand castle can endure," Saber said loftily. "At least for young Illya's sake."

He clucked his tongue, then lit another cigarette. Saber returned inside the room. Kiritsugu followed, some minutes later.

"What's the news?" Kiritsugu asked Maiya.

"As predicted, news of the uncertainty in the Labyrinth has caused a staggering spike of unrest in the regions we evacuated," Maiya reported, without looking up. Kiritsugu glanced at Saber, whose face seemed unperturbed by the report. "There has been organized looting, widespread destruction from magical and Servant warfare. Babbage and Co. have also activated their defense protocols, and their company's already taken control of 80% of the Boulevards of Imagination. The Academy is in full lockdown, as are the areas designated A and S. All in all, fully sixty-five percent of the city is expected to be damaged to various degrees.

"Sir, do you want to proceed with the Knights' withdrawal?"

Maiya posed that question in a tone as flat and business-like as was her way, but the question itself lingered in the air like a black cloud of flies. It hurt to even consider it.

He turned to Saber, who inclined her head. "It is still your decision, ultimately, Master."

"You will not try to talk me out of it? You used to do that, Saber. With a whole bunch of things I decided."

The petite swords-woman frowned at him. "I do realize that withdrawing our aegis from even a small portion of the city is betraying the foundation of our pact. But now, we agree for once, Kiritsugu." Her stern face softened. "Long ago, I would have upheld my ideal. Always. Now, they have become more important to me. More precious. In this mud-ridden excuse of a city, only those two shine. And it is a noble thing, I believe, to protect such radiance, however small. Let the pigs squabble. I shall keep the pearls."

He chewed on an old piece of tobacco between his teeth, and mulled over the decision. Sacrifice part of the city, to have the knights protect Illya and Irisviel at all costs, or do as he had always done, from the moment he declared himself the True Master to the whole city? Defend the city with his Servant's Knights, summoned through his Wish?

He looked down to meet Maiya's eyes, who waited for his word expectantly. Whatever he decided, she would follow him, be he damned for it.

He wished he wasn't such a broken man, his pride dashed to the dust. But therein lay the start of the hypocrisy: the would-be hero who could not lay down his desires, his selfishness.

"Inform your subordinates, Saber," he intoned. "Protect Illya and Iri, at all costs."

Saber said nothing for a few moments. Then she bowed, and approached the object on the carpet near her. It was a large, cross-shaped object, which looked like some sort of table. It was said to be Sir Galahad's shield, granted to Saber by the Grail to facilitate Kiritsugu's wish.

The Knights all around the city had been summoned through the shield in legion, but Galahad himself had never come. The shield now acted as a conduit for Saber to enact her wish upon the whole army.

A golden sword appeared in her hand, which she thrust upon the surface of the shield. "As your King," she announced, her words echoing unto the hearts of those who were gathered here by the shield's power. "Protect Illyasviel Einzbern and Irisviel Einzbern with all your might, my brave soldiers!"

Kiritsugu wished he could say that a huge burden had been lifted from his shoulders; but it was as if a dozen more had been placed on top.

* * *

Shirou

They clustered upon a small island, facing an overwhelming hurricane. He almost got dizzy from seeing all the disintegrated parts of the room course all around him in kaleidoscopic patterns. The only thing that seemed different here was that their little island didn't seem to be moving, but that could just have been a trick of his eyes.

Shirou could little understand what had happened. But he did know-some primal part of him-that staying any longer than usual would be bad. His danger senses, attuned from his many brushes with death, screamed "escape" to him, many times.

Focusing his Reinforced eyes, Shirou's gaze sought and found Rin and Kairi. Their Servants were fairly easy to spot, what with the attacks they were using. But the magi themselves seemed to be on floating pieces that were drifting father and farther away.

 _Did they not have a plan? Would they really stay to fight it out here?_

"Saber," he said. "Please go there and save Rin and Kairi. Bring them here."

Without the use of half his limbs he'd be dead weight going in there. It was possible to walk and jump, particularly with the abundance of mana all around, but he couldn't use his arm, and that just cut his usefulness in half.

"No."

That cold word silenced all. Shirou slowly turned to regard his blackened Saber. She stared back with an implacable expression.

"Saber, please do it," he repeated.

"No."

A vein seemed to throb in his head. He set his jaw. "Why?"

"I should ask the same of you, Master. Why should I?"

"Because they're in trouble, can't you see?" From his position, the far end of the place had become some sort of large drain, through which the shattered remnants of the room were rapidly disappearing. Both Rin and Kairi were there, and seemed to make no move to escape their predicament.

Saber glanced to the side, before shaking her head dismissively. "I don't see it. They're magi, and they've their Servants. We should be thinking about our escape, Master."

 _Of all the times for her to start being stubborn!_ Well, she had always been bullish when it came to his decisions, but Shirou figured on wearing down such an attitude over time, by demonstrating he'd decided everything in good faith.

As it was, he quickly grew annoyed instead. He didn't have time to explain his reasoning, particularly in a situation as desperate as this. "Saber, I won't ask again. Please retrieve them."

"I shan't do it."

"Oh!" Rider exclaimed suddenly.

"And I recommend you not to," Saber said quickly.

Rider crossed her arms under her breasts. "You don't tell me what to do, peasant."

Saber scoffed. "Fine, you go. You're very welcome to try."

Rider's little interruption hadn't changed the course of Shirou's anger. "Rider, please. I want you to stay. It's Saber who should be doing." He glared into Saber's eyes. "Please do it."

"No. This alliance has run its course. Let us look to the future, Shirou. Away from scheming magi, or anything that would threaten us. No one else knows about you now."

"Saber, I've had enough of your attitude! Don't make me pull these on you!" Shirou shouted, displaying the symbols on his arm.

Saber glanced at them. She pursed her lips. "You can try," she whispered.

"I don't want to, I never want to, but you're making the decision difficult! I know you don't trust me as a magus. That's your prerogative. But do not fight me on something like this. You must listen to me, especially now. Don't make me do something I don't want to do."

Saber flared her nostrils.

"Hmmm..." Neither of them broke their impromptu staring contest to look at Rider, who'd just spoken. "These waters look troubled... My prince, wouldn't it be a good idea to just kick out this Saber?"

"Watch what you say," Saber said testily.

"Such a disobedient hound deserves to be taken into the forest and disemboweled. There's no use in the castle for something like that. It's just the same as you, Saber. The prince could well just order you to kill yourself, and that would be a benefit to him in the end."

"Rider," he said in warning.

"My pardons, my prince. It is just that I have seen such disloyalty many times before. Not the least was that embarrassment you witnessed at my castle. What do they call it? A 'team player'? Right. Those who cannot be 'team players' have no use at your side."

"So is a wordy bitch who has no need to carry on," Saber said, raising her sword.

"Both of you, enough," Shirou said. "Saber, look at me. Is this your final answer?"

Absolute silence. He sighed, a tired note of resignation running through him. The red symbols on his arms began to glow.

Saber planted the sword right in front of him, the edge very near to cutting Louise's flesh. It was as if she were daring him to proceed.

"By these six Command Seals," he intoned.

"You would not dare-"

"Saber, I order you to rescue Rin and Kairi, and their Servants if needed. Go!" The seals expended, an explosion of sound erupted from in between them.

Saber stared at him in shock as her whole body trembled. "You bastard." Turning rigidly to the side, she leaped off their small island. She waved her sword, which blazed with dark energy, before thrusting it behind her. The outpouring of force propelled her forward, like a makeshift rocket, sailing over the dangerous storm towards the others' position.

He watched her go. He felt like absolute crap. That wasn't the hardest decision he had to make in his life. But it still seemed to sting him, somehow, that he had to use what was reasonably a mind control device on Saber. He'd always thought he'd never have to go that far with a Servant, if he were placed in a similar situation. And now...

...Now he just felt so bloody tired.

* * *

Other

Like a jet-black comet, the presence came crashing down between them. "Come," it said curtly, when the dust cleared.

Rin stared, puzzled, at the dark-dressed, petite figure who stood before them. She didn't know what it was doing here, and neither did Shishigou.

"I'll not ask again. Come."

"But-"

She felt Archer arrive behind her. Kairi's Saber also landed on his end, staring suspiciously at Bob's Saber.

"Interesting way to use your weapon," the other Saber drawled. "Hm? Wait, that armor..."

"I have been commanded to take you to Master. Both of you," said Bob's Saber.

Rin rose to her feet. "Really? But..." She looked around her. "There's nowhere to go."

In a lightning swift motion, Saber lunged forward. She pushed Archer aside, then grabbed Rin by the arm. Rin felt the sensation of falling through the air, then she felt like she were being carried on someone's shoulder. She looked up at Saber's stony face. "Wha-?"

Then she felt Saber move, and the other Saber cursed something as Kairi Shishigou yelled. Then he too lay like a potato sack over the other shoulder, also looking quite surprised.

"Oi! Wait, you damned Saber!"

"Hold on tight," Saber said, and Rin's stomach lurched as she went from zero to high speed in less than a second. She couldn't help screaming; Shishigou did too. She'd been carried by Archer like this before, but never in such gut-wrenching, nauseating speeds.

Behind them, their Servants pursued, though none could match the speed of the black comet.

* * *

Shirou

For some reason, the other two Servants looked crossed with Saber when they finally reached their little island. Shirou ignored that for now, and turned to Rin.

"We need to escape."

Rin groaned and rubbed her head. "I can't. The entrance is shut."

"What?"

"Something happened... blech." She opened her eyes. "The entrance has been sealed off. We're dead meat."

"Oh, that's real optimistic of you, young lady," Shishigou said. "But I'm gonna have to confirm what she said, Bob. You did good trying to rescue the both of us, but we're still stuck. In the metaphorical blender." He looked behind him, at the distant vortex. "...Well, call it a literal blender."

Shirou looked from him to Rin in surprise. "You can't? But I can summon the mana just fine." He raised his arm. He closed his eyes. "Yes... I feel it. Your mansion, Rin. It's there, and we can reach it."

"Really?"

He opened his eyes, then nodded seriously. "Now let's go."

Rin and Kairi glanced at each other. Then they took his hand. He directed Rider to place his arm under Louise.

Shirou exhaled. He concentrated, gathered the mana one more time.

Then, finally, he took them home.

* * *

The forest churned, as if lashed by a great typhoon. Fierce, titanic winds ripped the trees from their roots, casting down entire swathes from their slopes like a mendicant shaving his own head.

In the midst of it all she walked, oblivious to the destruction around her. No, it was as if the idea of destruction itself seemed reluctant to even touch her. Her long white veil, almost like a bride's, floated unconquered in the violent breeze.

Altera's eyes were narrowed, peering through the rampant chaos and generally ignoring it like they were useless frivolities. Eventually she smiled, and her pace quickened, leaping and dashing over the ground that had started to split apart like a crushed fruit.

The object was just about to be carried away by the relentless winds; Altera reached as far as she was able to catch it in her hands. Her fingers closed over the cold metal eagerly.

"...Captured it."

She floated there in midair, as if gravity had forgotten itself. Great, massive chunks of the ground floated past her, like asteroids in space. Altera opened her hand and saw the little nail. A small smile crossed her face, before her face tightened into a frown.

"I will do my part," she declared, watching the room disintegrate around her. She did not care for the destruction; soon all of it would be folded into the greater maelstrom that engulfed this Labyrinth. And then the Labyrinth would birth more realms, more "rooms". She had seen it happen before; it would happen many more times still.

Even as she waited, floating there in space, the debris began to disappear, one by one, until only the raging mana-storm was left. Then it began to eat itself, the overflowing energy turning back inward, leaving Altera floating in a dark, formless void.

And then light exploded: the energy came rushing back, filling the whole space. Then colors began to appear, as if a deity had poured paint through a hole, which now coursed all over the area. The colors swirled, then settled, then resolved into shapes. Walls erected themselves, barricading the endless horizon into a finite concept. The ground pieced itself together, like a puzzle being cobbled. Seams knitted shut, rifts and valleys sealed up by mortar, and holes closed.

The distant hole disappeared, buried underneath the preceding matter. A blue sky painted itself above. A calm sea materialized below. And then there was a cliffside, upon which Altera descended. Trees rose behind her, growing up from the ground without heed for time. Birds and insects made their noises from the underbrush.

In this quaint scene, only Altera seemed the anomaly. She rolled the nail upon her palm, before placing it inside her garments.

She held no emotion now but curiosity. She wanted to know what the "other one" had felt, long ago in that virtual world.

 _To learn what it meant, to-_

Humming a tune from her youth, she sat down on the ground and stretched her legs, content to watch the idyllic sea with a small smile on her face.

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Sincerely apologize for the delay, new year's got me with a nasty stomach bug, which was catastrophic since I got little in the way of resources for medical aid. Thankfully it sorted itself out, though I could not even look at a computer screen for a long while.**

 **Anyway, judging from my notes, next chapter'll be the last for this particular "arc". Introductions are done, and then we can finally get into the meat of the story.**

 **This will also be a good time for me to start laying the foundations. I'll be writing for several of my other stories then, so the first chapter of the new arc might take a while. To old readers though, be pleased to know several favorites will be resurrected, and I've also got a _Bleach_ or _RWBY_ story I might jumpstart from my notes, so's I can make a decent P-reon offering. Hopefully it'll be a success, fingers crossed.**

 **That's it for now, look forward to the last chapter, which will also probably have "Stat sheets" and my writing notes thus far, which will be coming very soon.**

 **Thank you!**


	15. Epilogue 1

**(((Chapter 14)))  
**

All in all, the incident had become an unprecedented disaster, according to what he'd heard in the aftermath. 15% of the overall population of magi in this magical City had been wiped out, lost to the whirling magical ravages of the Labyrinth. It had been like a sudden tsunami, or an inescapable wildfire-none of those who'd ventured into the Labyrinth on the fateful day managed to escape, especially with the entrances all sealed. The only survivors were the three of them: Rin, Shishigou and himself.

The Labyrinth was said to have reformed after turning into magical mush that day. After sending in familiars and automatons to investigate, it had been determined that nothing had changed. Travel into the Labyrinth continued to be restricted as elite teams from something called the Overseer's Office went about investigating.

The City itself had not escaped unscathed. Due to the suddenness of the situation, panic had moved like an electric surge through the populace, contributing to the 15% statistic. Mass riots, plundering, and large-scale battles had erupted in various sectors all over the City. With no police force or any other authority to crack down, many lives had been lost in the rampage.

The astute would observe that this only applied to those low- to mid-ranking magi who lived in such places. Rin's mansion, for example, along with all her neighbors on that stately hill had been largely unaffected by the chaos. Emiya Kiritsugu's knights had been said to have been an impenetrable dam that funneled the encroaching madness away from the regions they protected. And then, of course, there were isolated pockets of elite magi living outside the cordon who were simply too powerful for the rabble to overcome, and reduced them to walls of corpses. Afterwards, people like Kairi Shishigou were making a killing accepting contracts to help collect the dead-while also fully sanctioned to ply their trade on the side.

In the ruinous aftermath, aside from the corpses that had to be cleaned up, there was also massive, widespread infrastructure damage. Entire rows of houses had been fully or partially obliterated by magical fire. Fears of dormant magecraft and mystic codes lying unharmed within these ruins-which had the potential to burst out, like a landmine-had slowed progress considerably.

Shirou supposed they had all been lucky to have been able to escape. He didn't even know how he'd managed to bypass the locks on the doors that the Harways had sealed. Rin had been very relieved to have survived, and Shishigou held a similar view.

To show her supposed gratitude, overnight, Rin had called in some sort of healer to look at his wounds. Louise had already revived by then, though she was still weak from the effort of healing the damage to her spiritual core. She had gushed on and on, teary-eyed, at the expense he had incurred for having to save her, though he did assure her that his paralysis was temporary.

Such was the opinion of the healer who'd come in response to Rin's summons. It was a Servant, young-looking, petite and pretty, with short, elf-like ears. Rin had told him that the Master had accepted a Contract to Command this Servant to not reveal anything about "Bob", which amused him of the lengths that the woman would go through.

"I'm just glad _this_ one's reasonable about it," Rin told him with a sigh.

The healer Servant had pronounced his condition to be a result of a powerful curse, though he didn't point out that he already knew. It was only fortunate that his Projection of the cursed scythe couldn't quite replicate all its minutiae-the real one would have done far worse if he'd broken it.

"Can you cure it?" Rin had asked.

"It's quite simple," the Caster said with a wide smile. "In fact, it's like a cough that'll go away in time. But as this is affecting his mobility, I'll have to wrest away the curse with my Noble Phantasm. Would you please excuse myself and the gentleman?"

After Rin left the room, the Caster turned to him and sighed. "I won't ask how, or why, or even what it is. But please do not use any item that involves this curse again. This is just a professional advice."

"And why is that?" Shirou asked calmly. With the assessment, his opinion of the healer grew.

"I have detected a thin layer of a similar curse beneath the current one, which tells me you've used it before. It is an insidious thing. It is still weak, and easily cured by your body processing mana-but let it accumulate like a sediment and eventually it'll go very bad."

"Well, I had my circumstances before," Shirou said. "But I do promise to think very carefully before... Well, before using _that_ again."

"Please do," Caster said, closing her eyes, as light surrounded her. The same, faint light now surrounded his limbs, and illuminated it like it had become bioluminescent. At the same time he could feel the sensation in his paralyzed limbs return gradually. When the process ended, a dull buzz began to circulate all over the affected limbs.

"Thank you very much," he said, bowing.

"You're welcome, and please do mind what I said. I may not be your Servant, but I do have some pride as a healer." Caster stood and reclaimed her staff from the bedside table. "Curses like that delve into the sort of Magic that existed in my time. In fact, whatever item it was might've been blessed by the Gods, but I digress... By this I mean it might've been impossible to cure, if the curse had been any stronger. Please do take care now."

"You've been a big help," Shirou repeated.

"Fufu. You sound cute, even if you're as old as my grandfather."

Rin had then further prescribed more rest for him, and so he did take her up on that offer, spending the next couple of days recuperating inside her room.

One would have thought it would be an excellent time to tackle the issues that remained between him and his two Servants, but they proved him wrong. The black Saber was virtually nonexistent, for all that she only appeared once or twice to assure him she hadn't broken free of their contract.

And Rider was a splendid dissembler when it came to discussing the events in her castle, and the circumstances therein; whenever the topic came up she'd be as slippery as an eel, moving the conversation side to side like a trader surreptitiously shifting bad inventory to the very back of the shop. And then of course, she'd ended up avoiding him entirely.

The only one who stuck to his side was Louise, who seemed to take his weakened condition as a sign to become his personal nurse, secretary, and physical therapist, all in one. She went about it with a somewhat clumsy aptitude, but she learned quickly. It reminded him of Sakura, even, when they'd first met, before she learned to be as good a cook as him.

Eventually, it got to the point that her constant presence made their interactions seem like he was a wounded soldier in a war and she his nurse who'd became uncommonly attached. He could certainly see some hints of longing and hope in her eyes when she looked at him, something which Shirou took in guarded stride. He, of course, would never even think of toying with a woman's heart, but it all became doubly awkward when it was his own Servant. He only hoped it wouldn't get to a point where he had to make a decision, because it was hard not to admit Louise's charms, even if he did not deserve her admiration.

Such matters only added up to the pile of headaches he had to face. In addition, there was still the matter of settling the issue between Rin and Kairi Shishigou.

* * *

It had happened like this. Rin, having been separated from him in the Labyrinth, had tried and failed to divine his location. At first, Saber and Louise had been there with her, just as worried at his sudden disappearance. Then of course, some hours later, he'd summoned them.

There had been a significant form of time compression at work, which became clear only in the aftermath. The time he'd spent inside Rider's room could have been measured under an hour, or thereabouts. But to Rin, it had been close to five days.

Rin had panicked. He didn't know why she'd worried about him that much, but Shirou supposed one good reason might be his knowing her identity as True Archer. Her first thoughts might have been of betrayal, and she'd fortified her mansion, waiting for an attack by another Master.

Then, knowing she could not live long in suspense, she had given in and contracted Kairi Shishigou, who was said to have experience in tracking lost people. He supposed Rin had assumed she had nothing else to lose in trying to make sure he'd gotten himself killed in whatever place he'd ended up.

Of course, the very moment they'd set foot in the entrance room, ready to set off, who ended up appearing but Bob, fresh from the ordeal at Csetje Castle. Rin had then thought quickly, and had assaulted Shishigou in an attempt to have him sign a self-geas contract. In engaging his services, she had been forced to divulge Shirou's identity as an independent magus and not her Servant, along with his special complement of Command Seals.

Shirou greatly disapproved of what Rin had attempted-she could have easily killed the other man if she'd put her mind to it. Then again, condemning Rin at this juncture, way after the fact, seemed stupid. Particularly since the event had been settled into a truce, of sorts, with Kairi Shishigou holding out an olive branch in the form of a self-geas contract he'd made himself, whereby he promised not to divulge "Bob"'s secret, in exchange for nothing from Rin. This had puzzled Rin, and even Shirou, who was aware of the self-serving nature of magi, tried to find an angle.

After a few hours, Shirou figured it out.

On the day of Shirou's recovery, Shishigou had returned openly, as if he didn't fear to be placed under Rin's power inside her mansion. He did point out that his Saber had her orders, and that betrayal or coercion would be very unfortunate for all parties.

During the renegotiation, Shirou was proven right in his suspicion when Kairi made it part of the deal that he wanted _three Command Seals_. He would vow to speak no word of Bob's existence, his capabilities, nor even that he knew "Bob" was not Rin's Servant. Of Bob, Kairi would not speak, not even under duress, even in the face of death and danger-as the contract said. Rin had of course rejected the terms, partly for Shirou's sake, but also because she seemed to see it as extortion of the highest caliber. A battle would have formed, then and there, with Kairi's Saber already drawing its sword, when Shirou intervened.

He accepted the terms, and took it upon himself to be the other named party in the contract, replacing Rin. An outraged Rin had almost sicced Archer on him, before Shirou reminded her that this very specific point of fact only strictly involved him. It was _his_ Seals on the line, and it was also his secret. So it stood to reason he would buy Shishigou's silence with Command Seals, of which he had plenty. Rin did not need to dip into her own resources to pay, and would not even be named in the contract. However, Shirou did stipulate that Shishigou would not retaliate against Rin, at least not until three days had passed.

"Oi oi, that's pretty steep, man. I mean, I'm the one who got wrecked by the missie here. What, I can't defend myself from her?"

"You've no fear from Rin," Shirou said. His confidence lay in the fact that so far Kairi only knew about "Bob", and so it was the only secret that was on the line. It would be illogical for Rin to have to pursue Kairi "just for the heck of it", because as far as Shirou knew, she had not risked anything but the initial downpayment to hire Shishigou in the first place.

"If you've still got a beef with each other, then be my guest and duke it out. Three days later. This gives you time to head out of here unscathed, Shishigou, and make your own preparations if Rin here does go crazy."

"Are you insulting me?" cried Rin.

"Now Rin, ultimately this is a win-win for you," Shirou then explained. "Can't you see that?"

After much begrudging words and glares, Rin eventually left the room in a huff, leaving him and Kairi to hash out the contract.

"That was real mighty smart of you," said Shishigou. "You're like some negotiator types I know."

"Not really," Shirou said. It just took his gambling on Rin not willing to push for something that would not see results. His Rin had been brilliant, extraordinarily so, but she did not tolerate futility. It looked like this Rin also shared the same qualities. "But I can smell a whole lot of bullshit coming, and I smelled it clear from the moment you opened your mouth and requested three of these suckers." He lifted his hand, displaying the thousand-strong seals.

At that, Kairi whistled. "So that's why you were asking for if you wanted to sell a Command Seal. Well, I'm impressed, man. You're technically set for life. The only thing you can't buy with those things is maybe the Grail itself."

"I might be coerced into being generous with a bit more of these," Shirou said, voice sinking into a conspiratorial level. "If I can get information on how to convert it into those 'piece' things you mentioned."

"Aahhh... I getcha, I getcha," Shishigou said, catching on to Shirou's meaning with a lopsided grin. "Well, Bob, I may not be the best information broker in the city, but I do know people. You want anything, a gun, a catalyst, a reagent, hell, someone to fuck, you can ask me."

"I'll hold you to it; well, except the last one."

* * *

Rin's mood ended up souring, but of course she didn't seem keen on kicking him out yet. Their "alliance" was still in effect, whether she liked it or not. And of course, the cat was now out of the bag, with Rider's appearance having broken Louise's deployed Espionage, which now let Rin perceive he had _three_ Servants instead of only one. Now was the perfect time for her to backstab him and forever remove a liability to her position, but it was clear she was still weighing her chances in the face of a numerical disadvantage.

And so Shirou worked not to antagonize the poor lady. It was a method like a parent appeasing a sulking child, but of course he did not view this Rin in that patronizing way.

A day after concluding the contract with Shishigou, he'd approached her, inquiring about the ritual she'd planned for them. He'd prepared an excellent batch of tea, using a recipe tailor-made to please her-well, his version of her. It was cheating, perhaps, but he was the sort to use an opportunity when it appeared.

"It's a wash, basically," Rin said, staring glumly at the tea he'd brought. "We've gotten all the materials, except for the dragon's tail."

"I see."

"I asked Shishigou about it, and he insists that it should be a tail of distinct pedigree. Well, I had him check the rest of our materials too, but he said it was all fine. But they're all going to be wasted within a few weeks if we don't end up with a tail."

"I could retrieve them myself," Shirou said. Though the chances of actually finding a dragon would be a colossal task.

"And have you out of my sight again? Fat chance." She sighed, and rubbed her forehead. "Sorry. I'm just a bit tired. What I meant to say was that the Harways have still kept all the entrances to the Labyrinth shut. No one's getting inside the Labyrinth any time soon."

"That sounds... bad, doesn't it?" The magi's lifestyle here seemed to revolve around that Labyrinth.

"We'll all manage, somehow," Rin said, shrugging. "...I guess you could have a chance of trying it, what with your ability to escape it in the first place, but..." She shook her head, her eyes hardening. "No. Not leaving my sight again."

"You sound like a clingy wife."

"Wha-Wha-What the hell are you talking about?" she cried, nearly jumping from her seat. He chuckled.

"I jest."

"Excuse me... master?" They both turned their heads to see Rider standing there. The elegantly-dressed Rider, looking like she'd stepped out of a medieval painting, fit perfectly among Rin's Western-style furnishings; better, even, than Rin herself.

"What is it, Rider?" Shirou asked. It was rare for the Servant to seek him-generally she'd started avoiding him like Saber because of all his constant pointed questions. Of course, this was a Servant whose Noble Phantasm included a dungeon room of bloody corpses, so he was well-justified in his efforts.

"Yes. Do pardon me my intrusion into the conversation, my prince." The crimson-haired lady curtsied. Shirou noticed the cramped look on Rin's face, which always seemed to appear whenever his Rider appeared. "I couldn't help but overhear your dilemma."

"Dilemma?"

"That you need an... ahem. A dragon's tail?"

"Oh, right. Yes, we do."

"Is it very important to you?"

Shirou shrugged. He glanced at Rin, who seemed to be ignoring the whole situation. "It is, for a ritual." Though how important that ritual was now, he couldn't say.

Rider made a long humming sound, her face pinched. "...I see."

"What is this about?"

"Oh, nothing!" she chirped. "Don't worry about it, my prince! I shall be sure to solve your dilemma!" She then dematerialized, before he could ask any further.

"That was weird..." Shirou muttered. He stroked his beard, lost in thought. Unable to reach a conclusion, he shrugged and turned back to Rin.

"It's only just occurred to me that you've really got three Servants, Bob," Rin said. " _Three_ Servants. That's a gigantic impossibility. A contradiction of our City's laws."

"Hum. As you say. But perhaps no one has ever tried it?"

"No," Rin shook her wrist emphatically. "No one has _ever_ been able to accomplish it. Many have tried to summon another Servant on top of their own. There have been anecdotes of magus who illegally went over the three Command Seal threshold-and the most they got was a violent wraith, or a similarly unhinged being that ripped its summoner apart. And then, many have even tried contracting with a Stray Servant, more famously with that Altera we'd met. Nothing. Failures. You're the first ever exception, Bob. You should feel honored."

"Not really," he grumbled. "I don't feel special at all."

Juggling three personalities was more work than it seemed, but he didn't tell Rin that.

* * *

His paralyzed leg had already recovered to full. There was no lingering pain, and as far as he could tell there was no significant change in functionality. He could run laps all around the hallways, pleased to see there were no adverse changes. He could kiss that healing Servant firmly on the mouth, though he had a feeling she would be less than pleased.

After parting ways with Rin, he'd headed down the hall to his room, only to hear some noises behind a door near him. He blinked, confused, as he and Rin had moved in entirely different directions. Could it be her Archer?

Then there came a muffled voice.

"Are you absolutely sure about this, Rider?" That was Louise.

"Y-yeah-no, give me a little bit..." And that seemed to be Rider's voice.

"Stop wasting my time, fool." And then there was Saber. He approached the door, ears straining and very curious.

"It's _my_ body that's on the line, you idiot!"

"I'm chopping it off now."

"Gaaah! No... Wait... Wait, wait, wait-"

"Assassin, hold her down."

"Um..."

"Yes! Alright! I'll do it! For heaven's sake, you flat-chested oaf, just hold on! I'm... I'm just preparing my mind-"

"Hum!"

"Gyaaaah!"

Rider's scream was so loud that Shirou ended up banging on the door. "Rider? Saber? Someone open up! Louise! What the hell's going on in there?"

"Ah, Master!" That was Louise.

"All... for my beloved... prince..." There was a thud, as of a body falling to the ground.

"Oi! Is there an emergency?" Shirou asked. Next there came the sound of their voices talking in a low volume. Then, the door opened.

Louise stood beyond the door. Shirou's eyes peered desperately behind her, and saw no sign of Rider or Saber within.

"...Louse, I heard voices... What was going on in here?"

"It was..." The Servant's face twisted into an awkward smile. "Mrs. Rider only wanted to show us something. Er... It's-" And then he saw what she was holding up in her hand. It was a small bit of tail, dark-colored, and floppy like a big, dead worm.

"What the heck?"

"It's a tail!" Louise proclaimed. "A dragon tail, I mean. I was just as surprised as you, Master."

"A dragon's tail?" He took the proffered object, and held it up to the light. Though its surface felt scaled, it seemed warm, like it had been cut fresh from the source. "But it's so small."

" _That's_ what Saber said-er... I mean..." Louise cleared her throat. "Well, in any case, Master, I do hope you'll appreciate this. They did do their best."

"Huh?"

Louise blinked. "Why, they said it was important for you. You and the magus needed a dragon's tail right?"

Shirou stroked his beard, bemused. "Oh... huh. I guess."

So did that mean he had to go along with the mad magus Rin's plan now?

"We'll need to get it checked, first," Shirou ended up saying. "I thank you, Louise. And please extend that same thanks to both of the others."

"I'm sure they'll be pleased, my lord," Louise said with a brilliant smile. Shirou marveled at the innocence of it, of those unaware of the tail's true purpose.

* * *

 _Interlude_

The Master has been seized by a rowdy impulse; whatever "Bob" had brought her had stimulated a resurgence in her creative zeal. Already he could see the dreaded materials being retrieved-needles, rare gems, barbed spikes-and he wonders what the man would think, if he knew. The horrors he'd endured...

He leaves the room, leaving the Master to her work. He passes like a restless ghost all over her mansion, visiting and inspecting each of her rooms in turn. Kitchen, check. Bathrooms, check. Ateliers, check. Workshop, check. Basement, check. Check, check, check.

He comes to the parlor, and hesitates. He can sense the other Servants nearby. The strong, invisible presence of Saber lingers near the door. She can certainly sense him too. Rider is sleeping inside the man's room. And the Assassin is moving openly within the parlor, somehow missing the point of its Class by not acting as an assassin should.

One long moment later, Assassin leaves, carrying something out. He watches her pass, before he phases through the room. He feels Saber following after him, though she remains invisible like him.

He materializes openly, allowing the other one to notice him. He takes off the lower part of his mask.

"So it is you, Archer. Did your Master want something?'

"... Why did you save her?"

"Pardon? ...Wait, you can talk?"

He crosses his arms. "As I see it, you could have already left the Master behind. You didn't owe her, nor Kairi Shishigou. You were able to leave the Labyrinth, where they could not."

"You ask why I saved them?" The man strokes his beard. The man is tanned and scarred, and he could almost see the long, storied life etched on his grizzled face. Every mark is a battle, every scar a testament. "Heh. Does there need to be a reason?"

"You'd even wasted Command Seals," he says. He'd overheard that conversation. The Command spells had been invoked in order to force Saber to save Rin and Shishigou. "All just to save her. It was frivolous, to the point of foolishness."

The man chuckles. "Certainly, it was frivolous of me." Then his gaze sharpens. "But as to foolishness-no, Archer. It was not foolish at all."

"Tell me, 'Bob', would you kill one to save a thousand?"

Bob sighs and shakes his head. "No one has the strength to accomplish the impossible, where I'm from. I have been asked that same hypothetical, Archer. Many times. And my answer to that will always be the same.

"Yes, I would save a thousand, including the one who needed to be killed. And should the world weave my failure around me openly, then I can still be content with saving as much as I could. For I know I'd have done all in my power-well, let's leave it at that. But rarely have I ever encountered such a dilemma. People would proclaim that the 'real' world is not as black and white as one childishly believes; and yet looking back, I think it's always been the black, and the white. Black for those I could not save, and white, for those I can. To me it's just the effort of getting more whites than blacks, though it can get... tiresome after a while."

"...Would you give your life for the thousand and one, if that could be accomplished?"

"Why, certainly. It is an interesting situation to ponder. But never one I've encountered in reality. Not yet, anyway."

"That is an inhuman outlook. You would sacrifice yourself willingly for the sake of others?"

The other one blinks, before his mouth twists into a wide grin. "Is that what you would call foolish, Archer?"

"Misguided perhaps. Not all are worthy to be saved."

"Are you a god then, who can separate the wheat from the chaff?" Though their talk seems on the verge of entering into a tiresome back-and-forth, he can see that the other one is still smiling. The man shrugs. "I've never cared about that. Good or bad, they're people I still need to save. I'm selfish like that, I freely admit. In the end I don't care, I just want to save them."

"Like a superhero?"

The man's eyes look to the side, for but a brief moment, as if an errant thought's just occurred to him. "No. Just a foolish, simple man."

Archer sighs. The man's answered many questions, but Archer's yet to find the Answer. And he has a vague suspicion he never will.

So why is the man still smiling?

"Anyway, is there a point to these pontificating, Archer? Are you, perhaps, angry that I saved your Master or something? Should I tell Rin that her silent Servant's actually got quite a tongue? No, wait, that sounds kind of wrong-"

" _Fall into your ideals, and drown_ -" The other one stops, his eyebrow raising. A tense silence follows, as the moment endures.

Then he scoffs. "-Is what someone I knew would have said. But, for me, I should just like to thank you, for protecting my Master." He turns around, and before disappearing, says, "I owe you one."

In hindsight, it had been a rather insignificant, meaningless meeting. And yet one cannot discount the inexorable pull of fate, that birthed this very moment that has passed. Emiya Shirou, in one way or another, will face his destiny, soon enough. Brief respites like these will be so uncommon. Perhaps it has been decreed that today will be the only day they can speak, though neither men are aware of the importance.

 _And so this story moves, like a spinning wheel, onto the next stage._

arc 1 end

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: And that's a wrap to the chapter, and the arc! As I've said before, this'll mark a bit of break for the story while I work to get my P-reon set up. Once it is, I'll return with a whole batch of stories published, including the start of a new arc for this story, so I'm hoping for your patience!**

 **Thank you for reading the story thus far, tell me what you think, and see you soon.**


	16. Prologue 2

(((Chapter 15)))

Sweat dripping down her forehead, Rin Tohsaka gritted her teeth, her whole body taut like a wound spring. Pinched between her fingers was a small, colored bead, which she was to place within a gap of similar beads arranged along the ritual circle. It was the last piece to complete the array-if she made a mistake at this point, she would have to scrap her work and start from the beginning.

A small, keening sound came from her throat as the bead slowly inched its way into the destination. When she was finally able to slot the bead into its proper place with a small click, she breathed out a long sigh of relief.

Then she pumped her fist in the air in silent triumph. Then, not even daring to breathe, she tiptoed back out of the ritual circle.

Ascending to the elevated portion of the room, Rin looked down and surveyed her work. Carefully, she stripped off the gloves from her hands as her eyes traveled all over the ritual circle. Runes of power at the center, to illuminate her purpose, traced through a mixture of blood and chalk and crushed pieces of bone and skin; then on the second layer, protective arrays made from the meticulous arrangement of phantasmal beast parts, acquired in that near-disastrous hunt days ago. And then lastly, the star-studded formation of gems on the outside, each cut by her artifice to match her specific design, all made to power her magecraft at the center.

Of all the materials she'd just used, she, like all the Tohsaka before her, preferred the weighty surety of the gems. Mined from the heart of the earth itself, and resistant to the pull of time, gems afforded an avenue of power that rewarded patience with considerable power.

Magecraft through the use of living organisms, or from the degraded remnants stemming from such things, showed themselves to be more potent, on a strict conceptual basis of power. Storing power in inanimate objects was an alternative, though generally considered inferior, with certain exceptions.

Personally she preferred her gems, which would last a long time, or at least long enough for her lifetime. Much of the materials she used for her day-to-day research were gathered from the Tohsaka hoard that never quite depleted itself over centuries of use. And now she had a means to ensure it would never run out, so she would always be prepared with her stock of gems no matter what

It even formed the core of her current research. Dragon's blood could curse one with invulnerability, the deadliest poisons could become the greatest panacea; a thousand meanings could and were attached to every herb, every flower, every root, granting nigh-unlimited use as catalysts; even gems had qualities that could grant small blessings. Her goal was to prove she could attach a certain "quality" to gems she synthesized herself.

"...Seems alright," she said in conclusion. The arrangement was yet complete, as it needed the remaining materials they'd gathered, as well as the intended recipient, one mysterious "Bob", of the many Command Seals.

"Hmph." Thinking on that mysterious older man brought forth complicated feelings. He was her benefactor in some ways, and was a person who wouldn't (or perhaps he just couldn't) judge her based on her last name alone. Then again he was also a cunning man who hid plenty of things from her, which was a fine way of indicating he could not be completely trusted.

Still, she could at least be thankful to him for agreeing to participate in the ritual. She felt excited, more than she'd ever felt with any of her projects before. This was, after all, the first time she would ever try her personally crafted ritual on a flesh-and-blood being, different from the incarnated spirit container of her Servant. If she could perfect this, then her method would be proven once and for all, and she would be able to inscribe it as another notch on the Tohsakas' headstone: the Mystery of the Insertion of Various Skills into a Physical Body Through Gemcraft.

She temporarily dubbed her ritual with the shorthand "Servant Skill Infusion: SSI", but if she were to perfect this it would just become "Skill Infuse". Magi would bow and grovel at her doorstep for a chance to discover her secrets, and ambitious Masters would pay everything for her to bestow all sorts of skills on their Servants.

Rin couldn't wait to start. After changing and refreshing herself, she came back up to the main area of her mansion. Thinking he would be at the kitchen at this time, perhaps about to feed his Servants like he had yesterday, she went there first.

There, only her Archer waited, busy with breakfast.

"Where is he?" she asked, after consulting her mansion's defenses. After a first pass, she saw that no one else was in the mansion but the two of them. "What the-where the hell did he go? I told him not to leave! We're starting the ritual today!"

Her taciturn Servant only shrugged.

* * *

Their next subject was a magus from the Enfriede clan. The last of his family line, he had died buried under the rubble of his own modest apartment.

"See that?" Shishigou said, pointing to several stains on the floor-or what remained of it, anyway. "Stonegazer gizzards. Very valuable. Damned waste."

"Huh..."

The grizzled man shook his head. "Must've been pretty brave, to find something like that in the Labyrinth without his own Servant. Or-well, he could've traded for it, beats me."

"You sure do know your lore," Shirou remarked. Much of the debris and rubble had been cleared away hours before by automata; then the familiars had come in to test if there were any active magecraft still lurking around buried, ready to ensnare the unaware. Only after that were they allowed to go in and start cleaning up. All told, it was an arduous task to sift through the ruination: on Shishigou's part to dispose of the corpse, and on Shirou to help put away any inactive belongings and collect them for the Overseer's office.

 _That's a thankless job, you know_ , Shishigou had pointed out. I _t's a job for the help, and Servants; and, like you're not actually a Servant, you know?_

 _No, no, it's fine, really. It's a way to get out from Tohsaka's hair, for one,_ he'd replied. And so, he'd accompanied Shishigou on his little job.

He was currently still masquerading as Rin's Archer. His cover story was of Rin sending him "voluntarily" to help clean up. People glancing askance at such a notion (and there were many) would think of it as a punishment from the Master for an erring Servant. And of course, since Rin could not possibly recall him via Command Seal, he could stay out here for a while, until such a time that Rin came out herself to retrieve him. Or if the day was over, whichever came first.

He, of course, was wearing his mask, to keep up the pretense. Shirou could give Rin that, at the least. It also helped deflect questions from the overly curious.

Watching Shishigou perform his gruesome tasks with the corpses, surrounded by the stench of death and inevitable decay, was an uncomfortable experience. The man looked almost gleeful to be in the presence of so many "job opportunities", equating all the dead as ways to augment his income. Then again, Shishigou's case was far less disconcerting than all the other ways the dead were handled all around-for example, some magi brought chained phantasmal beasts to outright devour any unclaimed cadavers.

So far it seemed to Shirou that the magi in this city treated the dead with less reverence than in his own experience. They were almost too practical about it, and with no perceivable religion that any of them practiced, whatever sentiments these magi ascribed to the recently deceased was only for close friends and family. Shirou at least saw some exhibit grief upon finding this or that body, which came a long way from making him write off the whole lot of them entirely.

Most of the magi expressed more horror on finding their properties destroyed.

"Spent almost my whole life with the morbidly oppressed," Shishigou replied, as Shirou worked to clear away the broken remnants of a study table and the burnt-out shells of several book-cases. "Everything I learned, I learned out hunting in the Labyrinth, and not burrowing my head into a book inside a stuffy room. Heh. In a way, I'm like that Emiya."

"Why do you say that?"

"Word is he never got to summon his Servant until just a few years back, give or take. It's the same with me. I only really got around to summoning Saber when my back almost got broken by a giant terraphobe. That's when I knew I couldn't do it alone anymore." With his hands wrist-deep in the corpse's guts, Shishigou chuckled. "Of course, summoning a Servant's got its whole bag of worms by itself, so..."

"Oi, you calling me a bag of worms?" came a voice, followed by Shishigou's Saber materializing behind him.

"Well, technically we're all a grab bag for worms when we die," Shishigou said shrewdly. "But... I certainly wasn't really saying that about you, Saber."

The messy-haired, slender Servant snorted. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. But you should be a whole lot more grateful, old man. I'm the only thing stopping you from becoming worm food these days."

"And for that, I am grateful for this unexpected windfall," Shishigou said, glancing at Shirou. "-Along with all these corpses, too, of course."

Shirou shrugged, but said nothing as he stooped to carry off more junk. One other benefit to coming all the way out here was to maintain his body's integrity, so it could be ready to move and act at a moment's notice. He was glad to see that the scythe's curse had not left a permanent mark on his body.

He'd only gotten a few paces before he noticed someone following him.

"Something wrong, Saber?" he asked, turning around to address Shishigou's servant. She frowned, then crossed her arms as she looked away.

"... Where's that Servant of yours?"

He cocked his head. "I'm not sure who you mean."

"Obviously it's the Saber, who else?"

"Saber?" He looked up at the faraway rooftop, where he recalled Saber claiming she would be, to watch over him. The decision was odd, as she wasn't an archer-type to take advantage of such a distance. Then again, they were still on almost non-speaking terms. "She's somewhere close by-is all I can say. Why do you ask?"

Saber snorted and tossed her head. "Nothing really. Just... That guy seemed really familiar... and not in the good way. It's almost like fa-almost like that Emiya's Saber, I mean. Bah, forget it. I'll just try finding that guy myself." She dematerialized.

Shirou stared at the space where she'd been, then shrugged to himself. He had enough on his plate with having to puzzle out his own Servants.

* * *

Interlude

In retrospect, it was quite simple. There was no reason for the anomalous Master with the multiple Servants to be so cryptic if it did not mean this "Bob" had employed some strategem. A Master obviously could not be left alone by himself.

Ergo, the Servants were here, in some capacity, ready to step in when needed. It took a while, but she did spot the unmistakable form of the other Saber on a rooftop a far distance from the disaster area.

With increasing trepidation, she scaled the building in one small leap, before announcing herself by materializing and taking one loud step on the rooftop floor.

She felt the Saber's eyes drift towards her before turning away, as if it were only to let her know it was aware of her arrival.

"...Is it you?"

The features were similar, too similar to be dismissed entirely. The skin was far paler than it should be, the eyes had thin reptilian slits, and the hair tied into a familiar bun was bleached of all its natural color. The armor looked like it had been dipped in hot pitch, which then bled with angry, red veins that coursed throughout the plate.

Yet even with the shift in color, a great veil of majesty still shrouded this one. For her, it still exuded the same feeling of awe-inducing power, inspiring in her a gut-wrenching longing.

"I do not know what you mean," the other Saber replied.

She blinked. "Don't play dumb. I know you recognize this face. I know you recognize this armor-" the armor shimmered around her, red-and-silver, and then she summoned her sword, which she throws onto the ground, clattering, like a challenge, "-And you certainly recognize this sword. So don't play dumb."

The other Saber stared at her, eyes searching her face for a moment, before it shook its head. "I am not the one you think." Then, it looked away.

She laughed, weakly. Her fists clenched, to halt the trembling. She'd begun to breathe heavily. "That's right. That's so... right. I think. I mean, there's one of you out there, with that Emiya. But I can't really talk to them, now can I? But you... you're here. I can talk to you. I can-"

"Is it really good for you to be here?" the other Saber interrupted.

"I-what?"

The black Saber raised a gauntleted hand, then gestured over the rooftop's edge. "Something seems to be happening with your Master."

She blinked. "Huh?" She turned to look, and there, sure enough-

* * *

shift

The armored Servant vaults over the rooftop. When it lands far below, it disappears into its astral form.

The form of the black Saber watches her leave with an impassive face.

Then it sighs.

"Was that alright?" it says, in a voice which surely did not belong to the Saber, though it seemed to come from its throat.

"That is obvious," comes the disembodied voice of the "real" black Saber, from somewhere behind.

A complex expression comes over the face of the visible "Saber", one that certainly looked out of place on the normally stoic Servant. "I certainly didn't expect to be confronted like that by Mr. Shishigou's Servant. I only hope I was able to act your part well enough. Was that girl someone you know?"

There is a long silence, which the "Saber" took to the other one refusing to answer a question again, like it usually does.

Then the black Saber says, "...No. It's just some random kid." And that is all she says.

* * *

Shirou

It was very hard to miss the unmistakable forms of the Knights striding through the wreckage. Towering at a full nine or so feet, in bristling full plate, looming way above the average of each magi that was here, each Knight cut a formidable image: of implacable strength, of invincibility. When a Knight approached near, it was hard to miss; seeing it up close in all its glory brought more than a slight trepidation.

Shirou returned from carting off the Enfriede scion's assorted junk to find that a Knight had approached Shishigou. Wondering if he should listen in on the conversation, he trod forward slowly.

Shishigou raised his voice. "...Listen, you. I already gave my statement to that other Knight, sir... whats-his-face, Sir Mayori-Marory-"

"Sir Mallory?" the Knight said, in a booming, metallic voice.

"Yeah, them, whatever." Shishigou looked up and caught his eye. "So I don't know what you want me to do."

Shirou sensed the faint presence of something brush past him, before Shishigou's Saber, in full battle gear, appeared in between the two figures.

"The hell do you lot want now?" said the small Knight, whose sheer presence was by no means undersold by its diminutive size. Saber oozed out hostility, a familiar taste of danger that Shirou had experienced himself quite a few times.

"Ah, sir Mordred. My apologies. I am sir Cradoc, of your father's Knights."

 _Mordred_? Shirou thought. _Wasn't that...?_ He filed that thought away as he continued to listen.

"You Knights all look the same, by the way," Shishigou remarked. He shook his head. "Both you, and that other guy who spoke to me. Even speak the same, by golly."

"So? Whaddya need from my Master? Is it some bullshit again about those hokey suspicions?" Saber demanded, crossing its arms.

The Knight raised its empty hands in a show of assurance. "Please understand, my lord, that this is a rather delicate investigation we've been given. As a matter of fact, we have already received Magus Kairi Shishigou's testimony from sir Mallory's report."

"What sort of investigation has you rattling the day of an honest peddler like me?" Shishigou asked.

"The worst kind, I am ashamed to say. Kidnappings."

A short, tense silence followed. Even Saber looked taken aback, as it was not able to summon any words. Shishigou shrugged.

"That's a serious thing to tell me about, but I ain't done nothing. What, just because I'm a necromancer, you think I'm a suspect?"

"Hah!" Saber slapped a hand to its armored chest. "How stupid! Master's not the type to just go out and find people to kidnap and harvest. He's a necromancer, so he'll have killed them first!"

"Uhh... Saber, that doesn't really help-" Shishigou said.

"Oh, my pardons, but I did not mean to imply that you are still a suspect, Magus Shishigou," said sir Cradoc. "It is your expertise that I have come here to request."

"My-oh, you wanna hire me?"

"Well... no. This is a request, by the joint authority of the King, and the True Master of Saber. We would really appreciate your assistance."

For a moment, Shishigou stared. Then he laughed, a loud, braying sound that pierced the ears. "Oh, that's rich! That's... that's good comedy right there. You're a good comedian, sir Caddy."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

"Listen, sir Knight," Saber now said, marching forward. "You ain't got the authority over the magi and the Servants in this city. None. Zero. None. I know 'that' King, and its Master would like to think otherwise, but it's the fact. You don't have authority here. Just a huge, overbearing standing army that can't even do the oppressing job even halfway decent."

The Knight heaved its great, plated chest, as if it were sighing. "...Magus Shishigou, I take this to mean you refuse?"

"Of course he-"

"Saber." The smaller knight paused. Shishigou coughed. "Listen... sir Knight. I'll get back to my first question. Exactly what is it you want me to do? What help can a necromancer like me give?"

"The Knights have been authorized into a small task force to investigate the matter. However, owing to certain...factors that are quite outside our control, we have realized that we need the aid of independent contractors."

"Factors?"

"The Knights are too... prominent. Our investigative efforts will end up being hampered by virtue of our being as we are."

Shishigou wiped the blood from his hands. "Okay, okay, I get it, you're too big for the job, eh? That's understandable."

"...Yes. We have heard from our Master-that is to say, the True Master of Saber, Emiya Kiritsugu-that you are an excellent independent, with a large web of connections. You would be a great help in finding leads, and other sources of information that would help."

"That guy said it?" Shishigou chuckled. "Fucking hilarious," he muttered. He then met Shirou's eyes again. "Well, what do you think, Archer? Should I take on this volunteer work or not?"

"Hm?" The Knight turned, and Shirou met its visored gaze. "Oh, greetings, Servant Archer."

He bowed silently. After mulling it over for a moment, he opened his mouth, ignoring his earlier decision to keep silent. "It is your decision, magus. It is your time, after all." Shishigou's brow raised. "Still," Shirou continued. "I am... interested in what you've said, sir Knight. Who has been kidnapped? And why?"

"It is just as I have said, Servant Archer," sir Cradoc said. "People have been kidnapped. Children, most of all."

"Children?"

"Orphans, I'm guessing," Shishigou observed.

"Yes, it is as you say."

Shirou thought back to the bits and pieces of knowledge he'd obtained at Rin's library, regarding the city's inner workings. He'd been surprised to learn that certain institutions still existed in a fantastical city like this, where no one feared the specter of hunger and disease.

The presence of orphanages in the City was one of these, and in here they took on a more sinister aspect. Children came in not because of a lack of resources, but from the twisted, insane reason of total disinterest. Children incompatible with a magic crest, who were ugly, deformed, imperfect in any way for the criteria set by the parent, were discarded as readily as these inert mystic codes he'd just carried.

It sickened Shirou, but for now there was nothing he could do, all by himself. The only consolation he derived from it was that these magi had not gone on to perform twisted acts on children and babies, which would be well in line with what he expected of magi. If there _were_ such inhuman bastards, then they hid their actions well away from the eyes of the public. Even then, he was not sure if the other magi would even care.

"...I can sympathize," Shishigou continued to say, stirring Shirou from his thoughts. "Grew up in one myself." Shirou's eyes widened, now seeing the leonine man in a new light. "But I'm sure you know as well as that Emiya that the sick truth of this city paints a hopeless picture. Wherever, whoever those kids were, there ain't any chance of getting them back alive, if at all."

Shirou clenched his fists. "I realize that," the Knight said. "However, honor demands we fulfill the directives set for us by our Master. Hopeless though it may seem, we are still determined to investigate this matter. If we cannot find these children, then we are at least directed to bring justice to any who are responsible."

"Hmmm..." Shishigou pursed his lips.

"Perhaps it would benefit you to lend your expertise, magus," Shirou then told Shishigou in a pointed manner. "I am sure you can find a reward here that no one else can see."

"Uh...huh... I see." Shishigou surely had understood Shirou's implication. The thought of being offered a Command Seal was more than a tempting offer. "Ah, well then. Sir knight, you've convinced me. I'll put my ears to the ground. I'll be sure to turn over any information I got to you. I've also got some people you can look at right now; I got a feeling they're the ones with the hands in the cookie jar. If not... well, with a little persuasion they can help you find some other roads to explore."

"Allow me to assist you too," Shirou said. "I believe I have certain talents that will better aid in the investigation.

"Oh no, that would be too much of an imposition, Servant Archer. What would your Master say?"

In the larger scale of things, getting involved seemed like a bad idea. But, he was still unable to figure out his role in this world, so this was a start, at least.

It was well in line with the work he used to do, for much of his life.

He smiled. "Oh, she won't mind."

* * *

 **Shurpuff says: Hello again!  
**

 **Here begins the new arc! And as I've said before, I have been contemplating a move to P-reon, and over the past weeks I've gone along with it, with help from a few readers and pals, and I've spent a few more time fine-tuning the details-as well as writing more material! The page is still rather bare-bones at the moment, but I aim to be able to pretty it up soon.** **I only hope it shall be as successful as I'd like it to be.**

 **But we'll see: whether or not it flies or flops is really up to you, dear readers. I will, of course, continue writing, flop or no, as much as I can. I've got some new stories lined up to publish, and I hope you guys enjoy them.**

 **With that said, I shall officially declare that you can now find me P atreoN, under "Shurpuff". Please drop by, and as always, thanks for reading!**


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